


Bound To You

by SilverBardIcarus



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Klance as dads, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-02
Updated: 2019-01-30
Packaged: 2019-09-05 12:39:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 14
Words: 24,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16810792
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SilverBardIcarus/pseuds/SilverBardIcarus
Summary: Shiro and Adam had a turbulent end... Or so they thought. More than fifteen years after they last saw each other, they've been put face to face by the almighty hands of destiny, awakening inside themselves a feeling they thought they would never feel again towards anyone, even more someone they thought they've lost forever, in every sense.





	1. Day 1: Broken Warrior

**Author's Note:**

> (This chapter happens between day 10 and 11 of my keithtober fic - link on the header of the chapter - but can be read without reading it previously. It takes place 15 years after their battle against the galra on earth. Keith and Lance left on a mission to a unmapped planet and Lance almost got shot by a black armor soldier, who turned out to be Adam, controlled by galra technology. After they’ve rescued him, they took him back to earth. He was badly hurt and spent five days on a cryo-pod. This event takes place right after he got released.)

[Day 1](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16159973/chapters/38048066) (reunion): Broken Warrior

Adam couldn’t believe his eyes as he took his time to really look at Shiro fo the first time past a decade of being apart from each other. His serious face hadn’t changed, but it seemed old, older than he even was. He was worn out, with bags under his eyes and beard growing wildly.

“ _What happened to him?_ ” Adam wondered. He wasn’t very different himself, with all that ugly scars on his body and face, his hair already gray on his temples.

Earlier, he made the mistake of seeing himself in the mirror. Luckily he was alone on the bathroom when it happened; he couldn’t avoid crying loudly thinking of everything he lost. He didn’t felt like his past self anymore, nor he knew who he was.

Shiro had his tense back turned to Adam while he furiously searched through his clothing to find anything that could fit his guest, whose body was recently healed and still ached in some places. It was, of course, an excuse not to face the man he had no idea how to deal with. As soon as he was released from the cryo-pod, after spending five days in there healing from all the injuries, the man gave Shiro a lost and longing stare who shook his foundations. He couldn’t let Adam in again, knowing he had already hurt him when he left for Kerberos mission.

Mysteriously, the other paladins faded as soon as Adam was released from the cryo, leaving the two of them facing each other awkwardly. The only solution was to guide him to his bedroom, the same they’ve shared for all those years as Garrison teachers. Adam got nostalgic seeing the place where they’ve spent so much time together; he was hit by the realisation that all this was over and frowned. The memories of the time he spent in the dark while mourning Shiro returned to him in a flash.

His memories were scrambled, and he couldn’t put them back together.

“When are you going to face me?” he asked in a small voice.

Shiro threw a satin pajama on him and stormed out of the room. Adam took that as an answer. He changed clothing and laid down, falling asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

Outside the room, Shiro was pacing nervously, his fingers combing his white hair nonstopping.

“ _You have to go back there and talk to him!_ ” he scolded himself for his cowardly behaviour, but everything on him told him to run away from that place. He couldn’t stay there and face his own mistakes, not while feeling like he was the indirect responsible for Adam’s state. If only he had asked the man to leave with him on his mission… They would’ve been together through this. Or maybe he was the one who should've stayed. They would have helped Keith grow as a soldier, instead of him getting spelled. They would’ve found the blue lion with Lance and see the space together. They'd be side by side...

Instead, he was selfish and that ended up with their relationship, as well as leaded the man to have his body burnt and soul broken. He couldn’t forgive himself.

“ _If he’s a spy_ ” he thought “ _I’d gladly let him kill me._ ”

He owed Adam this…

A loud noise woke him from his self deprecating state. It was as if something heavy fell to the ground. He entered the room, expecting to see something, anything, that confirmed his fears; instead, he found Adam curled up on the floor, quiet sobbing.

Shiro felt his heart break again, the guilt choking him. He approached Adam carefully and noticed the man was sleeping. The Atlas' captain tried to put him back on the bed, only to be thrown on the floor. Adam’s hands were pressed against his throat, his body on top of Shiro’s, who tried to call him a few times, unsuccessfully. He then grabbed Adam’s forearms in an attempt to free himself from his grip; he was almost losing his strength by the moment Adam released him, breathing hard and backing off as if his touch on his arms were on fire. He sat with his back against the wall close the door; Shiro thought he would leave the room running, but he seemed to have no strength left on his body.

“A-Adam?” Shiro said in a rusty voice.

“Shiro?” he asked, wrapping his arms around his knees. He sounded like a lost child, nothing like his old confident self. His eyes had the thousand yard stare; it scared the other man. “I’m sorry.” his voice cracked.

“It’s okay.” he said, massaging his neck. “Are _you_ okay?” he tried to get closer and Adam pressed his body against the wall, afraid of being touched. “I’m not gonna hurt you.” he whispered, leaving his hands visible.

“I don’t want to hurt you again, Takashi.” he replied, frightened.

“You’re not going to, I swear.” he kept his voice low as to not alarm Adam. “You just got me by surprise the first time.” Shiro touched his arms, slowly pulling his reluctant body towards his own. They ended up on the floor, laying beside each other.

“I don’t want to think about the last time you’ve moped the floor.” Adam told Shiro, showing a trace of his old self on a small voice.

“Yeah, let’s not think about this.” Shiro said, chuckling.

Tired as he was, Adam couldn’t stay awake for a long time. He didn’t know how many years he spent sleeping less than five hours a night, if that trance state was considered sleeping; now his body seemed to be protesting with every cell to not stay awake. This time he was fast asleep and Shiro was able to carry him to his bed without a second episode of what happened earlier. He covered Adam’s body, watching his worn out face under the dim light of the room. He took the hair off his eyes, which made him flinch in his sleep.

Shiro sighed and kept looking at him for what seemed to be and eternity. He didn’t know how or when, but he ended sleeping the way he was sitting on the floor, his arms on the bed serving as a pillow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, it was kinda sad, but I promisse it'll get better soon. I hate to see them suffer TT  
> See ya  
> ~Lee


	2. Day 2: Bad boy, good boy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a flashback on which Adam remember the time he first met Shiro, at his first day at the Garrison. Adam is often mistaken for a bad guy because of his serious face and menacing aura, when deep inside he is - mostly - a soft person. Shiro, on the other hand, has "good guy" written all over his face. They met and the first impressions mattered more than anything.

**Day 2 (first meeting): Bad boy, good boy**

It was the eve of his first day at Garrison and Adam was completely lost. The backpack with all his stuff was weighing on his back; he was wandering in an attempt to find someone to tell him where to go and unpack his stuff. He was annoyed at how careless they were with the new cadets. He also didn’t spot any other person who seemed to be arriving at the same time as him.

While he was cursing every space nerd in the institution, he bumped into someone. He turned to the person, ready to start a fight, only to find himself holding a huge cardboard box that almost hit him on the face.

“I’m sorry!” the guy said, his face hidden by two other boxes he was carrying.

Adam held the one who fell on him and took a second one, uncovering the boy’s face, who looked shocked at how easy Adam managed to hold it as if it was nothing. Shiro was short back then, easily mistaken by someone years younger, while Adam, despite being scrawny, was too tall for his age, which made their first impression of each other completely wrong. Adam wasn’t a bully, he wouldn’t be able to pick a fight with someone younger than him — or so he thought —, even if he was still angry by the whole situation.

“Do you need help with that?” he asked the teenager, still believing he was younger than himself.

“I can handle it.” the other answered, a fierce look on his eyes. It made Adam smirk.

“Let’s do this: I help you with the boxes and you help me reach my room. What do you think?”

The boy looked at him, suspicious of his good will. Adam understood the feeling; there’s no way someone would trust a guy who seemed capable of punching him without a warning. His father told him he should try to be more approachable, or at least dress anythig other than black clothes, but Adam liked to be respected, even if it had a little fear involved.

“Where to?” he said when the other boy didn’t give him an answer.

He tried to smile at him, which seemed to work. The smaller boy guided the way without a word. They were walking side by side, silently.

“What’s your name?” the guy asked, still facing forward.

“Adam.” he gave him a side glance, surprised to see a shy smile on his face.

‘’Adam…”

“Just Adam.” he regretted saying that as his smile faded. “What about you?”

“I’m Shiro. Takashi Shirogane, in fact, but everyone calls me Shiro.” he shrugged his shoulder “They said it’s easier.”

“I’ll call you Takashi, then.” Adam smiled wider, really smiling this time, to which Shiro’s answered with the brightest smile.

Adam would never confess it, but he struggled to make friends because of how he looked. However, Shiro didn’t seem to be afraid of him; he wasn’t even suspicious anymore. His tough face hided the fact that he was a huge nerd. He loved everything about spaceships and their mechanical functioning, and could spend hours talking about it without rest. Sure, he could punch those who pissed him off, although he rather not spend his time doing useless things such as fighting. It always got him in trouble and he couldn’t figure out why people wanted to fight him most of the times.

“Can I ask you something?” Shiro said, uncertain. “I mean, you don’t have to answer.”

“Sure.”

“Why are you here?” when Adam frowned, he hurried to clarify it “I mean, the entrance guide was a couple of days ago, so you’re kind of late…”

“ _That’s why I’m lost?! I can’t believe it!_ ” he thought, angrily. Why haven’t his dad said anything about that?! He was already six months behind everyone, having transferred in the middle of the academic year, and now he discovered he was lost because his forgetful father didn’t say a thing about the entrance… He felt like a fool.

Feeling Adam’s temper arise, Shiro hurried to calm him down.

“The second semester classes haven’t started yet, you’ll have time to settle down.” he sounded nonchalant, even though he was concerned with the frown on Adam’s face, which seemed a permanent feature. “I can explain everything to you, I know a thing or two about the rules and even the people here.”

“Would you?” Adam asked; it was his turn to feel suspicious of Shiro’s good will. “Why?”

“You’re helping me. And since I’m supposed to take you to your room…”

Adam smiled again, his upset face dissolving. He didn’t know it, but his almost unused smile was blinding, charming, cute, surprising, all at once. His face relaxed, his eyes almost closing. Shiro was enchanted by it, and noticing it made him blush.

“We’re here.” he cleared his throat, trying to conceal his embarrassment.

While Shiro was storing the boxes in a small room that looked like an office, Adam looked at him, wondering in which class he was. Freed from the boxes, his orange uniform made him think again. If Adam himself was a first year cadet, it meant…

“Wait, are you a first year?” he blinked a few times, shocked.

“Yes…” Shiro answered, raising an eyebrow. “I know I don’t look like one but—” how could he have guessed the guy was younger than him? Well, even if the minimum age was 14, maybe he was a young genius.

“ _Nah, you’re just finding an excuse to your slowness!_ ”

“Sorry about it.” Adam said, lowering his head. He never apologizes but this time he did without thinking twice.

Shiro had some weird effect to him, and it annoyed him to the point he wanted to annoy the boy as well.

“Maybe if you weren’t so small…” he said as they headed to the dorm rooms, rolling his eyes theatrically; Shiro punched him on the arm, much too his surprise. “How dare you?!” he laughed hard, holding his belly with one hand. It didn't hurt and made the reminiscent tension between them disappear.

“A yeti like you has no right to talk to normal human beings!” he complained, laughing. Adam put his arm around Shiro’s shoulder, messing his black hair.

“Here I thought you’re just the teacher’s pet, but you have some spirit.”

“Don’t call me that.” he said, no trace of humor on his voice.

“My bad, Takashi.”

“ _Why am I apologizing again?_ ” he grind his teeth, trying to swallow back his pride instead of making another snarky remark. Had it been anyone else and he wouldn’t do it, no matter how wrong he was.

Shiro was also shook in so many ways by Adam; he felt flustered having his arm around his shoulders, his voice close to his ear. Differently from Adam, he was conscious that those feelings were part of the attraction one exerted on the other, while Adam was just confused and unsure of what Shiro was doing to him. Shiro smiled at how kind the other boy was being since he bumped on him on the hallway.

Truth be told, he was indeed the teacher’s pet. He couldn’t say no when people asked him favors, and it put him through stupid situations, such as carrying three boxes for a classmate who was probably slacking as he spoke to the other guy.

“A classmate asked me to do it, I couldn’t refuse...” Shiro said, not knowing why he was opening up to him. “I never can.”

“Stick with me and I’ll teach you.” he said near Shiro’s ear, making him blush again.

“I forgot to ask… Which room are you in?” the boy changed the topic as an excuse to take Adam’s arm off of his shoulder, missing the comforting weight on the same moment he removed it.

Adam pulled a folded paper from his pocket and showed him the number. Shiro blinked, blank faced.

“We’re in the same room.”

They smiled to each other, surprised by the coincidence.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wish I could write more about their teenage selves, to develop more of their time together as students. Tbh, I think Keith got his attitude complimented by Adam more than once, while Shiro wasn't looking at them, I mean.  
> I'm slowly building in my mind their dynamics. While I was writing keithtober, I put them as rivals, which I think is the way Adam would deal with his attraction towards Shiro, at the beginning. He's also someone who likes to tease people for fun, which is why he's often mistaken by a bad guy (aside from his face; he really didn't know how to smile often before they met). The Adam underneath this facade is a huge mechanic nerd who has an addiction for letting everything organized. This makes him a great teacher. And a tyrannic roomate.  
> That's it, see you tomorrow~  
> ~ Lee  
> P.S. - I didn't proofread it, so if you see something weird, you can warn me about it any time


	3. Day 3: Rocket

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While Adam was asleep, his memories came back to him, making him remember who he once was: a fierce - even scary - guy who cared about Shiro more than he even knew, the top student and pilot and the most sarcastic person he ever knew. However, no sarcasm was enough to prevent him from falling hard for his roomate.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I explain it later on this chapter, but as I mentioned yesterday, we’re navigating through Adam’s memories, so they’re not chronologically organised. I intend to follow this subplot until Thursday, the last chapter of it. After that, I’ll go back to the main plot of them mending their relationship after almost 20 years apart from each other, so STAY TUNED (I always wanted to say that!!).

[ **Day 3 (First date/First Kiss): Rocket** ](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16159973/chapters/37819466)

His memories were foggy. Scenes kept going non stop but he couldn’t reach the point he wanted to see more than anything.

“You should ask him out…” said Adam’s best friend, Jared, catching him staring at Shiro while the guy left the cafeteria.

Adam couldn’t avoid following him with his eyes. It was as if Shiro had a magnet on him that attracted his stare even when he wasn’t aware of it. He frowned at his friend.

“I’m not asking him out. We’re rivals.” he filled his mouth with food to avoid answering his friend, one of the few he got in all the time he was on Garrison.

Two years had passed since he entered as a first year student and Shiro, his roomate, changed a lot. He grew up to the point they had the same height, which surprised Adam. Moreover, if before he was treated like a plain guy who was eager to comply, now he was respected as the top student of his class, aside from occasional haters. Their friendly rivalry was born because he and Adam would always be the top two in everything. While one was treated with reverence, the other was treated like his archenemy. Not that Adam’s attitude helped him; he couldn’t care less to what other people thought or said about him, no one would say a thing to his face. Not having done what he had to the one of his classmate’s face; he offended him, although he couldn't handle him offending Shiro.

“Stop daydreaming about him, you’re spilling your lunch.” Jared scowled, disgusted. “You should really think about asking him out. Otherwise, you’re going to keep thinking about him forever.”

Having said that, he picked his bag and left, leaving Adam to his own thoughts.

He entered the room he shared with Shiro and his heart almost stopped. It seemed like the place was attacked by thieves. He shivered, thinking how much time it would take to fix everything. Laying on the top of a small clothes mountain was Shiro, with his legs crossed, as well as his arms, looking angry. 

“What are you doing?!” Adam asked in a high pitched tone. Shiro looked at him, feeling guilty. He knew how much Adam liked their room clean, but to his defense, he planned to fix it before the other guy returned to the room. It seemed that in the end his plans weren’t so good.

“I’ve lost my textbook… I guess.” he scratched his chin, looking at the mess he had made as if the answer to his problems were there, somewhere. “My things keep disappearing lately, I don’t know what to do.”

“We have a test after tomorrow.” Adam pointed. He hated theoretical tests, but they were necessary.

“I know.” Shiro sighed.

“Fix your face,” the boy said, touching the space between his eyebrows “I’ll just go back to the classroom while you search in here.” he picked his backpack and left.

He would’ve kicked the door if they weren’t slide doors. It diminished the menacing intention, but he could work with that. Most part of his classmates were already there, sitting on their desks and chatting loudly. Adam punched the table and everyone stared at him, some annoyed and others in disbelief or even fear. He looked scary and angry, more than usual.

“I’m going to ask it once: where’s Shirogane’s book?”

“What make you think we’ve got them?” the guy who he had punched before, James, had the nerve to ask it, a smirk on his lips.

“He would never lose his textbooks.” a few people agreed with their head, looking at each other to see if someone would say something else.

“If that’s what you think, I have nothing else to add.” James shrugged his shoulders.

“Then why have you opened your mouth to say something?” Adam glared at him, who flinched. Some other guys snorted with laughter, making James embarrassedly red. “Let me say one thing: if any of you can beat Shirogane doing fairplay, I recommend you to do it instead of trying anything funny; if you bother him, you’re bothering me as well.”

It had some effect on the class. They fell silent and sit still on their chairs; getting on Adam’s bad side was something even the bravest of them would be frightened to do. A girl pointed at one of the guys who earlier laughed at James, one of his minions, without saying a word.

“Well?” he looked at the teenager, who hurriedly took a textbook out of his backpack and gave Adam, his hands trembly.

As he looked through the pages, he saw they were all marked with offensive drawings and slurs.  
“You have until the end of this week to give me the money for a new book or I’ll be showing it to our teachers.” he smirked “If you dare to pass through my authority, we’ll have to take things to the next level, don’t you agree?”

He left the room, stomping; he was beyond furious. How could they do this to Takashi when he was the most caring person? He treated everyone as equals, cared for them, and that’s how they’ve paid him back. Adam hid the book inside of his backpack, taking his off instead. Outside their room, he breathed deeply, trying to calm down.

“Takashi, I’m sorry, I didn’t—” he blinked a few times, seeing Shiro holding on his hands the rocket his father gave him for his birthday. He ended up forgetting to launch it because he wanted to call Shiro to go do it with him but ended up missing the opportunity… For maybe a year. Or more. What could he say? He was a shy boy.

“What is this?” he asked, curious.

“Dad gave it to me, but I’ve never used it.” he shifted his weight to the other foot, uncomfortable. “Oh, here, use my book for the test.” he gave it to Shiro.

“ I can’t accept it. How are you going to study?” Shiro looked concerned; Adam flushed as he noticed his roomate's eyes focusing on him.

“I’ll go to the library if it’s necessary. But you know I’m better than you on this subject.” he displayed one of those rare smiles that only showed up if he was together with Shiro “Are you going to surpass me someday? I’m getting tired of waiting!”

“Stop mocking me every time you feel awkward.” he counter-attacked, letting Adam with his mouth hanging. Shiro had figured him out like a few people could. “Thank you, you’re the sweetest person I know.” the smile Shiro gave him made him melt on his feet.

“It just proves you need to know more people.”

“Adam…” he said as a warn, in a low voice, and he got quiet. Again, the control Shiro exerted on him never ceased to impress. Now he was more conscious that it meant he felt attracted to his roomate, and it made him confused in a way he wasn’t used to be. He turned his back to Shiro, trying to avoid staring at him for too long. “I’m thinking…”

“Here it comes.” Adam mumbled, facing him again.

“Why don’t we launch it after classes?” he pointed at the toy rocket, painted in white, red and blue. “Take it as a thank you for the book.”

“Who said you can launch it better than I do?” he ruffled Shiro’s hair and he laughed.

“It’s a date then.” Shiro said.

Adam’s heart thumped loud inside his chest.

“ _A date._ ”

The oneiric scene changed to the end of that same day. He spent what to him was an eternity trapped inside his mind. Adam finally reached the point he wanted to see all along.

Shiro was dressing in his usual tidy clothes; he wore a short sleeved button-up shirt, slim denim pants. Adam remembered looking at his moccasins and wondering if his mother dressed him. However, he noticed the effort Shiro put on his outfit and his hair and couldn’t help but think he never saw him as handsome as he was seeing now.

He too gave his best on his outfit — kinda difficult when you only had black clothing — and put on the combat boots he seldom used. The best part of that was the black crop top he matched with his choker.

They didn’t plan anything but ended up having the same idea of bringing food and a blanket to lay down on the grass (planted in the middle of the desert on Garrison artificial gardens) and see the sunset, posterior to the rocket launching.

“You look gorgeous.” Adam confessed, avoiding establishing eye contact with Shiro.

“Thanks.” he said, clearing his throat. “You too.” he didn’t comment or joked about Adam’s shy compliment, which made him feel less worried about spoiling their good mood.

“Let’s do it!” he pointed to the rocket.

Everything was perfect and seemed like it would work perfectly. Except it didn’t. As they have thought, it worked the same was as an actual rocket, except it was small and didn’t need fuel to work. After they had launched it, they put some distance between them and the rocket.

“It’s flying!” said Shiro, hugging Adam tight. He went still, not knowing what to do.

He didn’t have time to do anything. Somehow, the rocket hit him on the head as it was falling. Adam fell to the ground, taking Shiro with him. He was breathless; Shiro’s weight combined with the falling motion forcefully took the air out of his lungs. Tears fell from his eyes involuntarily.

“Adam? Are you okay?” Shiro’s face was in front of his, separated by the smallest distance. Adam could feel his breath hitting his face. He tried to nod but his head hurted. He winced. “Hey, tell me where it hurts.” he tried to touch Adam’s head but he held Shiro’s hand.

“No.” he said in a pained voice.

“Oh, Adam.” Shiro held his face between his hands and gave him a light peck on his forehead. “The pain will go away.” he said, locking his eyes with Adam’s.

They didn’t need words between them, and neither knew who started the movement first; suddenly, they were kissing. It was far from everything Adam could've planned, which he didn’t. He didn’t expect Shiro to feel the same way as he did, much more initiate their first kiss; he was enjoying it nonetheless.

They finally stopped kissing as the sun was already setting, which meant they had to go back to their room. Adam didn’t want to, he would rather spend his time kissing Shiro, laying on the grass; his pain was gone.

Adam woke up, laying on his bed. He looked at his hand, both covered in scars and burnt marks. His vision blurred as tears fell down, unstoppable. He missed those times, he missed himself, the best student, the best pilot. His naïve and curious self.

It was the second time he had dreams about his past after he returned to Earth. He looked around him, the room’s light blinding him. Every since he came back from the space, he couldn’t sleep in the dark anymore; it felt as if he would be engulfed by darkness, the same darkness of the space, the same darkness that he held deep inside him.

And he was alone, as he grew used to be. Or so he thought.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another James getting punched, I like it (previously in this notes I said James could be James father but the ages don't match hehe)  
> Sorry, this chapter is terrible. I have no excuses for this... It's just bad.  
> Anyway, see you tomorrow.  
> ~Lee


	4. Day 4: Stargazing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I… I love you, Takashi.” He never thought he would be the one to say it first.  
> Once again, he never ceased to amaze himself. Shiro made him feel things he never knew he could; all that while making him believe he was the most special human being in the world. The way Shiro admired him made him want to be that person; even then, he felt like he could be his true self around him because Shiro knew him better than himself.  
> Shiro had tears on his eyes and opened his mouth to tell him he loved him too.

**Day 4 (family): Stargazing**

Adam was walking near the director's office — a teacher asked his help to carry a box of engines to the teacher's office — when someone's angry screams made him stop his track. Truth is, he wouldn't have noticed it if he hadn't spotted Shiro through the glass windows, looking upset while a rich looking older man pointed his finger at his face. Adam was about to enter the room and interrupt their arguing; Shiro's eyes met his. He slightly shook his head, telling Adam to stay away from the discussion. The guy looked worn out, but wasn't saying anything in return to the older man's accusations. He seemed so small, despite having grown taller than the man, as if he was shrinking under the weight of the man's aggressive attitude.

Since Adam couldn't do anything, he sat in a bench outside the room, waiting for the end of their quarrel. Shiro visibly relaxed, having noticed his roommate presence was still there, and it made Adam's heart ache in solidarity. He was used to be treated differently, Shiro wasn't. He tried to do everything on his reach to help others, to clear misunderstandings, to not be pre judgmental and treat everyone equally, integrating them to the rest of the class. He did all that while keeping his scores the best in class, helping teachers out — not in an attempt to impress them, but because that was his personality — and giving advice to other students. Adam's opinion was that Shiro was too good for this world; he made his personal mission to watch Shiro's back even if he didn't need to.

The man who was yelling at Shiro stormed out of the room, and the poor guy left it wobbly, sliding down the wall until he was sitting on the bench in front of Adam's.

Adam ran to him.

“Takashi…” he raised Shiro's chin, looking at him in the eyes. Although he wanted to ask if he was okay, who was that man and what he wanted and many other things, he couldn't. Not while he sat there appearing to be lost.

He wanted to kiss Shiro and say everything was alright However, they've said nothing about their relationship after theirs first date; it left Adam on unknown ground. Moreover, it was his first time falling in love and while he could keep his cool around others, Shiro broke all of his walls. Wrecked them, in fact, with everything he was.

“Adam,” Shiro said, breaking their silent eye communication “How can I get stronger?”

Surprising Adam, Shiro caught the hand he was using to lift his chin and intertwined their fingers, laying his head on their linked hands.

Adam's heart skipped a beat.

“You're strong, Takashi.” He answered; his hoarse voice forced him to clear his throat, while he blinked a few times to stop his arising tears. “You're stronger than anyone, even me.”

“I want to prove myself to be stronger.” Shiro boldly hugged Adam's waist, leaning his forehead on his belly.

The other boy looked around to see if someone was coming. He wasn't ashamed of Shiro — it was actually the other way around —; nonetheless, for Shiro to be seen with him would cause bad consequences for his naive roommate. Everyone exceptthe teachers and Shiro saw Adam as a bad influence, despite his brilliant intellect and his grades being as good as Shiro's.

He hugged Shiro back, not recovered from the surprising display of affection.

“How about we start by changing your look?” Adam smiled down at him “Maybe we could go shopping before we leave for the holidays. I've been dying to make you look stylish for once!” He joked, smiling.

Shiro rolled his eyes.

“You only wear black, how could you know what stylish means?” he tried to judge the crop top Adam wore underneath his open Garrison uniform shirt, which wasn't effective with him blushing at the sight of the exposed skin.

“Black is the best color!" he sticked his tongue out at Shiro "And I think you'd look good without all those white button-up shirts you've got.”

“Then it's a date?” Shiro shyly repeated the same question as the other day and it was Adam's turn to be embarrassed.

“It's a date.”

  


Shiro was silent while they were shopping, with occasional discussing Adam's suspicious taste in clothing, although he couldn't deny that his roommate was indeed stylish. For the first time in his whole life, he dressed as he wanted and felt comfortable with what he was putting on.

Adam noticed that Shiro wasn't completely free of worries. He seemed to have something weighting on his mind; Adam would wait until he wanted to share it with him.

“I'm sorry you had to see that.” he finally spoke while he was putting his coat on.

“Excuse me?” Adam asked, confused, opening the street door to him.

The shopping street was crowded with desperate people carrying multiple bags, frowns on their faces. Christmas shopping should be fun; instead, it was a dispute to see who could be more rude to the other.

“ _Christmas spirit, sure!_ ” Adam thought.

“My father yelling at me, I mean.” Shiro said in a small voice. If it were anyone else Adam would've missed the words, but their proximity and who was beside him made him aware of these words.

“So that's your old man?” he frowned “He's not nice.” he wanted to use other words to describe the man; still, he didn't do it. He was Shiro's father after all.

His roommate seemed to pick his euphemism and laughed.

“Yes. He isn't.” he sighed “He wants me to go home for the holidays, even though I don't want to.”

“Not fond of your folks?” Adam slipped his hand inside his coat pocket, waiting for his answer. Shiro awkwardly put his hand beside Adam's, holding his hand.

One of those rare smiles that Shiro loved appeared on Adam's face, unnoticed by its owner. It had the power of making his day better and his heart warmer. Shiro strengthened his grip on his roommate's hand.

“Not much. I wish I could spend my days alone instead of being forced to be there.”

Suddenly, stroked by a sudden Christmas inspiration, he looked at Shiro, wide eyed.

“What if you come with me and spend the holidays with me and my dad? It's nearby and we'll have our privacy. He's seldom at home lately; I think he's dating someone.”

“Y-Your dad?” he almost bit his tongue. His hands were sweaty with the rising possibility of meeting his crush's father before even developing their relationship. “S-Sure, why not?” the poor guy couldn't deny Adam, not with him looking at Shiro with sparkly eyes.

He wanted to take thing slow so he didn't spoil the friendship they already had. Maybe he got too comfortable with being Adam's friends, never really considering taking thinks to a further level. No matter how their relationship was, if Adam was asking him to be with him, he wouldn't say no to him.

Plus he would get away from his family, to whom he was never enough, to spend his days with someone he actually loved and cared about. It was a dream coming true.

Adam nudged him, winking when Shiro faced him. He could swear they'd have kissed if it wasn't for the place they were.

  


Later that week, both were laying down on the rooftop, stargazing.

Adam was rewinding what happened earlier that night, a silly smile on his face. Shiro was impressed by his father, a man on his late fifties with an alarming receding hairline and an easy smile that was identical to his son's. Talking to his father, people didn't figure out who Adam took after; truth be told, they were somewhat alike, deep inside, as in the way they dealt with unknown environment or their serious face and permanently furrowed eyebrows to hide their embarrassment. Shiro found himself smiling at that heartwarming environment, imagining how it was to grow up in that house.

The moment Adam left to put the trash out, his father patted Shiro's hand a couple of times.

“Take good care of my son, please.” those casual words made him choke and spoil the juice he was drinking.

Shiro had to concentrate not to blush at his words.

“He's the one who have been taking care of me, sir. We're good friends.”

“Please, call me father.” he smiled again, as if he had received a double blessing on his life.

Adam, hiding behind the door frame, covered his mouth, trying hard not to laugh. He could imagine the “he-knows-it” expression on Shiro's face.

Remembering it made him laugh loud.

“What?” asked Shiro, laying beside him. “What??”

His clueless face made Adam laugh even harder. He grabbed Shiro's shoulder, noticing he was laughing as well; it was contagious.

After Adam felt like he could speak again, he fixed Shiro's hair, avoiding his eyes.

“My dad likes you.” he was blushing and failing miserably to ignore it.

“Now I know why you're so kind. You take after your dad.” Shiro cupped his cheek, softly inducing him to lock their eyes together.

Everything he planned to say flew away from his head. They started at each other for the longest time. Their closeness would normally make Adam uncomfortable; in that moment he gravitated around Shiro. There were like two celestial bodies under the same gravitational force.

Their kiss made Adam dizzy. Shiro had one arm around his waist and the free hand buried on his hair, connecting their upper body as well as their lips. They separated; Adam was breathless. They put their foreheads together, their heated breaths mingling.

“I… I love you, Takashi.” He never thought he would be the one to say it first.

Once again, he never ceased to amaze himself. Shiro made him feel things he never knew he could; all that while making him believe he was the most special human being in the world. The way Shiro admired him made him want to be that person; even then, he felt like he could be his true self around him because Shiro knew him better than himself.

Shiro had tears on his eyes and opened his mouth to tell him he loved him too.

The words had no sound.

  


Adam woke up.

  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It took me sooo much to finish it (more than it should, actually!!)  
> I feel like I'm getting where I want to but maybe (just maybe) I got a little bit lost on the way (?)  
> I wanted to explore their fatherly figures as to compare them, that's why the first scene starts that way. Then they are figuring out how to make their newborn relationship to work and finally Adam's father informally accepting Shiro into their family. I might work on clarifying that on next chapter.  
> Thanks for reading (it was a very long chapter) and see you!!  
> ~Lee


	5. Day 5: The call

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adam's fragmented memories hurt him more than he let it show. After their direct confront against Lotor, he's been spending his days locked in his room, afraid to face those who made part of his past. Even more Shiro, who still made his heart beat faster for him. No matter what his feelings said, Adam wouldn't allow himself to be pitied or to reconciliate with Shiro only to discover he was doing it out of guilty.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Bullying, violence, depressive behavior.

[Day 05 (As students): The call](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16159973/chapters/38154044)

For several nights Adam alternated between insomnia and a deep slumber, filled with dreams that brought him to one person: Shiro. He would wake from these dreams, nostalgic, searching for him… Only to realise he was no longer by his side.

Everybody left him in the end, even the one who promised to never part.

He dived into his dreams.

The first and single time Adam felt ashamed of his upbringing was on his first year as a Garrison student. He had gotten the highest score of his class on Mechanical Engineering. It was easy for him, being a mechanical nerd as he was. He gave Shiro an exultant smirk; not long before that day, Adam had declared their rivalry. Both of them felt pulled towards the other, but Adam naively interpreted it as rivalry.

By the time the students were leaving the classroom, a guy bumped into him. Adam glared at the one who did. He saw James, someone whose attitude didn’t sit well with him. He had a permanent sarcastic smile, more like a frown, and malicious weasel eyes.

“What’s your problem?” said Jared, Adam’s only friend — Shiro was more than that to him —, to James while discreetly holding Adam by his arm to prevent him from jumping on the other boy.

“My _problem_ is having someone without qualifications among us.” he searched for support from his friends around him, gaining strength on his accusation “We know you’re not capable of scoring the highest punctuation without cheating the test.”

“That’s not truth.” Shiro interrupted him.

“How could the son of a mechanic do more than get dirty with car oil?” his weasel eyes were satisfacted to see the impact of his words on Adam; the crease between his eyebrows had deepened considerably and he clenched his jaw “Or it was you, Shiro, who gave him the answ—”

James didn’t get to finish his sentence because Adam landed the first punch on his mouth, followed by a sequence of other punches. The boy felt people trying to hold him, other people punching him to help James, loud voices calling their names or cheering for one of them; however they tried, they couldn’t take Adam off of James. The pure red hatred he felt burned like poison on his veins.

“ _Adam!_ ” Shiro’s voice sounded distant, above all others.

Later that day, he had already gone to the infirmary and the director’s office and now he was sitting, almost laying, on top of his bed; Shiro nervously paced on the room. He always did that if he was stressed. He also ran his fingers through his hair and it made Adam want to follow the same path with his own fingers. When Shiro broke his silence, the surprise made Adam jolt.

“You shouldn’t have lost your cool.” Shiro sighed, sitting beside Adam on his bed.

“I wasn’t wrong!” Adam pouted, much like a kid.

“I know… I-I” Shiro ran his fingers through his hair again, frustrated. “I simply… I don’t want people to fear you. If they knew you better they’d want to be your friends.”

“Takashi” Adam’s gaze was deadly serious “I’m not here to make friends.”

“What if you end up alone?” he asked, concerned.

“I have you.”

Shiro blushed and so did Adam, after he noticed exactly what he had just said.

“ _Adam!_ ” the distant voice got closer and closer.

He opened his eyes; The room was dark and Shiro was knocking on his door nonstop. He found himself to be on the ground, his blanket covering his face and his pillow up on his stomach. Adam rolled to his side and pressed his pillow against his ears.

Shiro gave up calling him almost half an hour later. Adam was hurting badly; he couldn’t overcome the feeling that Shiro was trying to reach out to him because he was feeling responsible for his state. He didn’t want the man’s sympathy or half-assed feelings. He was broken and he knew it well enough. It wasn’t the first time Shiro tried to treat him like that.

The soldier did the same thing on their last year as Garrison students.

  


Adam’s father wasn’t picking up his calls for a couple of months now; that was making Adam anxious and desperately worried. He tried to phone him again right before their first real flight started. That day was the most important to them as fighter pilots, even more to Shiro, who was their leader on the mission. As time passed, Shiro had more and more became a stunning man that didn’t overlook any injustice. He would constantly reach for a higher place than the one on which he was before, always climbing the hierarchical chain with Adam beside him as an equal.

“Let’s go—” Shiro touched his shoulder.

When he saw Adam’s concerned face, he knew what was in his head. Their closenesses over the years allowed Shiro to enter on Adam’s inner world; his microexpression were now easier to read. He was like an open book.

“No word from dad again?” Adam shook his head sadly.

Shiro hugged him, kissing his forehead..

“We gotta go.” Adam broke their hug, heading to the ship.

He was a professional and excelled at his function, which was the only reason he could focus on the flight. Their mission was to land on one of the Saturn’s satellites to provide supplies to the crew living in there and change Garrison’s orbital cameras, bringing the info to the base.

The mission went on smoothly. Adam left the ship as it was catching fire as soon as they landed on Earth. He phoned his house again, and it rung twice before someone picked up.

“Dad!” he yelled “I was worried sick!”

“Adam?” the known female voice made his blood freeze, a chill running through his spine. He _knew_ something was wrong “Darling, is that you?”

“Aunt Maria, what’s going on? Where’s daddy, put him on the phone please.” he said, covering his mouth. The other pilots glanced at him as they passed by, surprised to see such a crude display of emotion of him.

A hand landed on his shoulder. He saw Shiro by his side, giving him silent support.

“Dear, listen to your auntie, okay?”

“ _No no no no no_ ” he chanted on his head, biting his knuckles.

“Aunt, where’s dad?” he felt the tears starting to well on his eyes.

“Son, he’s on the hospital for a few months. He didn’t want to tell you, he... “ she breathed deeply, her voice breaking “He has a cancer.”

“He’s gonna be okay, we can loan money to pay his surgery, can’t we?” he felt his head spin and noticed he hadn’t been breathing “Nowadays, we can easily cure cancer… Please, auntie.” he added as she remained silent.

“I’m sorry.” these words felt like stabbing to his heart “He kept silent until it was too late. It’s a matter of time until—”

Adam couldn’t handle it anymore, he turned off the phone, his massive tears running down his face as raindrops on a thunderstorm night. He didn’t know how he ended on his room; Shiro conducted him by hand until they’ve reached their room. When he come back to his senses, he was inside Shiro’s embrace.

His head hurt and so did his heart.

“It’s okay, it’s okay…” Shiro said as Adam’s sobbing became louder.

“My father, he— He—” Adam was incapable of completing the sentence as if the words would be his father’s death sentence.

They were silent for a while, the only sound on the room was made by Adam. Shiro repeatedly kissed his forehead, his eyebrows, his cheeks.

“He’s my last family alive. I can’t…” he was almost hyperventilating “ I _can’t_ lose him too, Takashi.”

“I’m here for you, Adam. I’ll be your family.”

“ _I’ll be your family_.” the words were engraved on Adam’s heart and every time he felt he was crumbling, they were his salvation. He knew Shiro would be always there.

Or so he thought.

Tears flowed freely on his sleepy face.

“Liar.” he whispered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm insane. i have to read a book for tomorrow's test and yet I'm here, crying over adashi.  
> Let me tell you, I really cried when I reached the end of the chapter. it broke my heart! I hate to write sad stuff because I really feel it.  
> Lately I've been feeling like my writing sucks - it does - but I'm trying to keep going. Maybe, just maybe I can get better at it.  
> Anyway, hope you liked it! There's more angst coming but I SWEAR it'll be the last one. i'll end his memories and go back to the present time and his healing process.  
> See ya tomorrow  
> -Lee


	6. Day 6 (as teachers): Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: the content may trigger depressive readers.

**Day 6 (as teachers): Home**

That night the nightmares made Adam’s body quiver underneath the blankets. His body was slowly stopping functioning; he was locked inside his room for a week now. He no longer knew what was real and what was a dream, tangled with his bed sheets without seeing the light of day. It scared him to be in the dark, but the sun triggered the memories of being burnt and made his skin itchy to the point he couldn’t stand the sensation.

Adam’s memory came back to him any time of the day; he felt his mind was not functioning well and started avoiding the others, leading to his actual situation.

The tempestuous nightmares engulfed him.

  


Shiro was talking to Keith in the moment Adam stormed in the room. He threw his bag on his bed, something he wouldn’t do on a regular day. He opened their shared closed, throwing his clothes inside another bag he picked up blindingly.

“Adam, what’s happening?” Shiro asked, alarmed. Keith was feeling awkward being there knowing something was about to happen.

Adam didn’t answer. They were together for years now and their family increased by one; he never got so disturbed until now. He tried not to face Shiro or his anger and the betrayal would control him and he didn’t want to scare their brother. His boyfriend dismissing Keith in a low tone, and tensed up as he heard Shiro’s footsteps got closer. His body was starting to tremble from the stress.

“Love, what are you doing?” Shiro touched him on the shoulder.

“Don’t. Touch. Me.” Adam hissed the words through his teeth.

Shiro assumed a defensive pose, sincerely not knowing what was happening. Adam turned to him and threw the heavy bag in his chest. It fell to the ground while Shiro stood there, astonished.

“Why are you playing innocent?” Adam wasn’t a man that raised his voice and his own high-pitched tone seemed weird to him “As I was leaving my class, in front of my students, I was called into the office like a kid. Do you know why they called me?”

“I don’t know, Adam.” Shiro answered, hesitant.

“Your _fianceé_ was there.” he punched the wall, tears welling up on his eyes “Your parents didn’t know about us? You’re getting married to a woman? Why didn’t you tell me any of this? Am I a game to you?” he threw question after question on his boyfriend.

Shiro cast down his eyes.

“ _Please, no!_ ” thought Adam. He couldn’t handle the pain he was feeling inside.

“They’ve threatened to get me expelled from Garrison if you didn’t get married.” Adam wiped away his tears. 

“Adam, I never intended to marry, I swear!” Shiro didn’t try to approach him again. He was feeling ashamed, guilty and sad “I couldn’t call it off—”

“Because you’re still a people pleaser! You know what’s going to happen to you someday? You’ll see yourself having an unhappy life just to please others.” Adam picked his bag on the floor, pushing Shiro’s shoulder while he passed near him. Shiro winced; Adam missed his facial expression.

A tug on the straps of his bag made Adam stop.

“Please Adam, I need you.” new tears flowed freely on Adam’s face.

“You didn’t have the right to hide it from me.” he took off his glasses and cleaned it, avoiding to look at Shiro in the eyes. “We should break up.”

“Love, please.” he hesitated. Shiro’s raspy voice went to his heart.

After everything they’ve went through with raising Keith and overcoming his father slow loss, it was unbelievable that Shiro had been hiding this huge secret to himself. Adam was outraged.

“I’m scared.” Shiro sobbed, releasing him. He had no right to force Adam into his problems and tried hard to shoulder the burden of being the family’s shame, hiding within him the secret that he had a fianceé. Adam and his father welcoming him into their family and Keith arrival on their lives made he feel what affection was like for the first time.

The love he received from Adam was something he never imagined he deserved. During his whole life, he had to keep everything to himself and excel at everything. His family had taught it to him with difficulty. His high grades and engagement with complementary activities were taken as bare minimum. Staying at home slowly became suffocating. He never heard a compliment or affection. As time passed, he grew used to keep things in and solve things his own way. It was like that with his desire to enter the Galaxy Garrison, with his homossexuality, his frustrations.

He didn’t knew he could be torn apart before he met Adam. He easily became the person he would die for. He tried so hard to protect him that he closed his heart instead of being honest with the love of his life. He didn’t know how to let him in, he was scared Adam would grew tired of him. Ironically, his omission brought upon him his biggest fear.

Adam sighed. His bag fell to the floor.

“What are we going to do?” he bit his thumb.

“ _Hope I’m not making a mistake_.” Adam knew his boyfriend’s struggle and although it hurted and seemed unbearable to think Shiro didn’t trust him, he was his family. They never got into a fight with that proportion; they had no reason to do so. He decided to give Shiro a second chance.

“I’m going home.” Shiro made his decision “I’m calling off the arrangement.” he got his keys on his bedside table and headed to the door “I won’t ask you to stay, but if you do, I promise we’ll talk things through.”

Everything went dark on Adam’s mind.

“ _Takashi, how important am I to you?_ ” he was worried sick with his lover and yet, proving himself to others was the only way to ease his mind. He spent years worrying about the man's arm, and now he was passing through what seemed to be the worse of his nightmares coming to life.

He lost his home the moment Shiro left. They all did, in the end. He kept it together because of Keith, who got spelled no much longer after Shiro went on Kerberos mission. He tried so hard, teaching cadets and Keith, being social with his friends and piloting as if Shiro were his leader; Adam expected he would come back, safe and sound.

He didn’t. Adam mourned him.

  


Louder than his dreams, something woke him up. Someone took him out of the bad; Adam was so weak he didn’t see who it was. The strong lights outside the room blinded him, passing by him in a fast succession, as if he was running.

Adam floated in the air; the sensation was so good that he went back to sleep, feeling warmer and safe.

  
  


A while before they invaded Adam’s bedroom, Shiro was pacing nervously on the paladin’s kitchen, at Garrison; the other watched him come and go, not daring to interrupt his thoughts. Keith was the only one brave enough to do so.

“What’s on your mind?” he was holding hands with Lance without noticing he was.

“Adam doesn’t want to see me.” he sighed “I knock on his door but he doesn’t answer.”

“Now that you mention it, he stopped dropping by our house to see the girls” said Lance.

“For real?” Hunk sounded worried “I thought he was having his meals at your place. It has been a week since I last saw him in here.”

They shared an alarmed look. Shiro ran out of the room, heading to Adam’s bedroom. Pidge hacked the door, opening it.

Shiro felt his heart ache. Adam was curled in a ball, sweating and holding his pillow to the point of almost ripping it. He seemed so small, tired and pained.

If he ever got a chance to heal the man, he would take it. He didn’t deserve it; loving Adam did not give Shiro a free pass to hurt him the way he did. He couldn’t go back in the past, no matter how much he wished to. If he did, he maybe would have made the same mistakes; now, older and having faced death and suffering, he had the chance to go back home, to rebuild the foundation of that place he wrecked down because of his pride.

Even past all those years apart from each other, Shiro felt he couldn’t overcome Adam; neither he wanted to.

They both died once; after that, the time had come for them to be reborn.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I only noticed now that the "teaching" was secondary on the plot, but I needed to finish what I had planned lol  
> Hope you enjoy it, see you tomorrow!  
> ~Lee


	7. Day 7: Healing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adam wakes up in Garrison's infirmary after spending a week suffering with nightmares, ghosts of the past that caged him inside his own mind. Finally freed from his memories, he notices he had earned more than he ever asked for, or even thought he deserved.  
> Shiro and Adam have a serious conversation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter has a reference to keithtober chapter 20. I'm going to describe their children in the next chapter.

**Day 07 (affection): Healing**

The bright daylight passed through the window and bathed the whole room on its white light, leaving no space untouched. Adam’s eyes quivered before he opened them. He thought the light would hurt his eyeballs, but he wasn’t right. He was seeing the world again, as if he just noticed now he was not in space anymore.

His weakened body was sluggish and didn’t obey well. He tried to move it, only to notice someone’s hand on his.

Shiro was there, asleep while holding his hand. He had his upper body on the hospital bed, the rest of it on a plastic chair. Shiro was with him like in the first night Adam spent out of the cryo-pod. His other arm had a needle piercing his hand, connected to a now empty bag. He tried to sit and the movement woke Shiro up.

“Adam!” he jolted off his seat, releasing his hand as if he only then noticed it was there. His hands moved around; Shiro was checking if he were alright and fearful to touch him. There was the awkward man he always knew. “Are you alright? Does it hurt anywhere?”

“I’m fine.” he assured, in a low raspy tone “Take this needle off.”

He released Adam from the needle and covered his body with a blanket.

“Why did you do this?” his gaze was intense, filled with concern and something Adam couldn’t define what was, not without his glasses at least. “Were you trying to kill yourself?”

“What? No!” Adam frowned and took a moment to answer “I had no control over the flashbacks I was having.”

“And you decided to spend a week locked in your room?” Shiro asked ironically.

“It was that much? I didn’t feel time passing.” his sincerity convinced Shiro and he sat down again.

“Look, Adam—” Shiro avoided his eyes, incertain.

Multiple voices interrupted him.

“Adam!!” said the first one, cherfully.

“ADAM.” the second one was angry.

“Uncle Adam!” two kids screamed, in unison, before one of them fell on his stomach with an “ompf!”

“[Zola](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16159973/chapters/38283371)!” Adam’s younger brother scolded her “He’s sick!”

Adam was never greeted with such enthusiasm in his whole life. He covered his face, touched.

“Adam, are you okay?” Lance, the first one he heard, touched his shoulder, concerned.

He didn’t know if he could answer; he nodded. Lance surprised him by giving him a hug.

“You worried us, you know?” he whispered.

As soon as he released Adam, the other paladins and even the kids lined up to give him a hug. The infirmary was too small to accommodate everyone, but it felt cozy. He never had so many people caring about him.

“You won’t get rid of us that easy, brother” Keith told him on his turn to hug Adam.

Both kids, Zola and Kayla, were on the bed with him. They’ve known each other for a few years, ever since the galra took the children in. He failed them, getting mind controlled by the druids; he could no longer take care of them as he did after their parents got murdered. He didn’t deserve to have them there; however, he had already seen them on his first visit to Lance and Keith’s house and they’ve treated him like before. And now they were hugging him as if he would vanish if they didn’t hug him.

Meanwhile, Shiro stood there, far from him but longing for him silently. The only one who noticed his feelings was Hunk.

“Pal-adins, why don’t we go out to discuss tonight’s dinner?”

“Why would I? I’m a denial at cooking, remember?” Keith pouted.

Adam laughed. There was this one time when he and Shiro tried to bake a cake for his birthday. Both almost exploded the kitchen. It _was_ a surprise, not the one he expected.

The others heard his laugh and soft smiles blossomed on their faces. They couldn’t imagine how hard was to pass through what Adam did, and to see him laughing was like the first step to his cure.

“Come on, Adam must be tired.” Hunk tried to communicate with the others using his eyes and eyebrows; it only left them with a confused look on their faces.

“No, he’s not. Are you?” asked Pidge.

“Not really, no.” he shrugged his shoulders.

Hunk facepalmed, sighing.

“Shiro wants to talk to Adam. Can we leave them already?” he finally lost his patience.

Shiro blushed. The others finally understood and awkwardly left, one by one.

“Kids, let’s go.” Lance called their daughters. Zola kissed Adam on the cheek; Kayla almost broke his bones with a bear hug. They left.

“You’re joining us tonight, right?” asked Keith with only his head inside the room. “As long as food does not upset your stomach, I mean.”

“I am.”

Keith closed the door behind him, leaving the exes alone in the room.

“Adam—”

“Takashi—” they said at the same time, then remained silent, waiting for the other to continue.

“Listen, Adam, I… I know I don’t have the right to ask for this.” he ran his finger through his hair. Old habits didn’t die easily “Can I—”

“I don’t need your pity, Takashi.”

“Pity?” he blinked, surprised “Why in the world would I pity you?”

Adam’s blank face showed he was as confused as Shiro was.

“ _Have I got it wrong this whole time? It can’t be._ ”

Shiro approached him and sat on the bed, by his side. He held Adam’s hand, locking their gazes together. Time went still for what appeared to be hours; his pulse increased, and he was afraid Shiro could feel it on his wrist.

“Adam, I never once though you’re pitiful.” the way Shiro looked at him, serious and soft at the same time, melted him a little.

“I don’t want to get hurt again.” he stated this nonchalantly. “You did it twice. When you hid things from me and when you left me behind. Do you know how I felt?” Adam’s eyes were filled with tears. He wasn’t the one to cry easily, but with no exception, Shiro made his vulnerable side show up every time.

“I did everything wrong, I know it, and I’ll understand if you want to have nothing to do with me anymore.” Shiro held their intertwined hands to his chest “I was fine with you moving on from me, because I wasn’t worthy of the love you gave me. As I arrived to the galra invasion and you were said to be dead, something inside of me died as well.”

“So you know how I felt.” Adam stated in a harsh tone “I mourned you, Shiro. Not knowing was worse than being sure. Always hoping, always expecting you would come back alive, despite what everyone said.”

Shiro embraced him; Adam wrapped his arms around his waist. He hid his face on the crook of Adam’s neck. He never did it anything as spontaneous as that before, as if he didn’t want to bother Adam. On his shoulder, Adam felt warm tears.

The white-haired man was duelling with his guilt. He knew Adam was too good for him and hearing those words from him made him give up on his attempt of being together with him again. He could promise he’d never do it again, but Adam’s trust on him was already broken. He stand no chance against his past mistakes.

“I don’t want to lose you again, Takashi.” he mumbled, laying his cheek on his hair. Some of his own tears fell.

They were a mess. Hugging more than a decade later, as white haired old men, crying while clinging to each other. Adam couldn’t find a place in the world he would rather be that inside Shiro’s arms.

Realising it made it easier to make his decision.

“I want to try again.”

Shiro’s tears increased and he whispered “thank you” many times.

  
  


At night, Adam was surprised with the feast the paladins have made. There were a variety of dishes, each of them made taking their nationality into consideration. They were also natural so Adam wouldn’t get will by suddenly filling his stomach.

It was so loud with all of them in there, chatting excitedly, showing how close their family was. Without a word, they’ve included Adam on their family, not only because he was their teacher when they were cadets, but also because they felt he needed a family, just like Allura, Shiro, Coran, Zola and Kayla did.

Shiro had been disinherited for cancelling his marriage, and his family finally turned his back on him. He knew it was going to happen someday, although he didn’t knew they would dismiss him by saying his destiny was the failure. They never saw him as a son; he was only the successor. Back then, Adam made him feel like he didn’t need them. And he didn’t. But he would be haunted forever by this words, hence he decided he had to prove anything to them and departed to Kerberos.

In that moment, he and Adam restored their status as family. Even if they couldn’t be together as a couple, they were family again.

They looked at each other, a shy smile on their lips.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally, a good chapter! I was eagerly waiting to change that angsty vibe, I couldn't take it anymore!  
> I really feel like they have a chance. I didn't want to build their relationship as a dependence; love is not about that. I'm still figuring out how the development will go from now on.  
> Thank you for reading so far, see you tomorrow!  
> ~Lee


	8. Day 8: Beautiful

**Day 8 (pinning): Beautiful**

Adam arrived in front of his room and Shiro was already there, leaning against the corridor wall. He was well dressed, an easy smile on his face. These days, he made a habit to wait for him outside his classroom — he started a short course to acquire a certification affirming he was able to teach again — or wait in front of his room, in a different wing, apart from his.

“Hey, Takashi. What’s the occasion?” Adam asked, unlocking his room and inviting him in.

“Dinner?” he raised an eyebrow “At Keith’s, remember?”

“I forgot completely” he said, looking at his feet while biting his lips. He didn’t want to bother his brother with his presence but he really wanted to go and spend time with him, Lance and their kids. Both voices were dwelling inside of him. When he looked up, Shiro was staring at his lips “How much time do I have to get ready?”

Shiro cleaned his throat.

“Ten minutes.”

“Okay.” Adam guided shito to the door. “See you in ten.”

Shiro gave him an hesitant, longing stare, before the door closed and separated them. Adam covered his mouth with his hands. flushed. He was no longer a teenager; why was his heart beating so fast like that? Shiro _was_ his first love, but they’ve passed the platonic boundaries long ago.

Five minutes had passed and he stood there staring at the closed door. He shook his head and went to the closet. Then he noticed he only had underwear and uniforms in there, nothing else. Adam forgot to buy clothing for him, it wasn’t his priority with all the emotional damage he had been suffering since he got back.

“Great!” he said to himself, ironically.

Adam opened the door again and found Shiro pacing outside his room. The sound of the door sliding caught his attention, and Adam pointed to himself.

“I’m ready.”

“But you’re in your uniform.”

“I got no other clothes, only noticed it now. Things have been busy the past weeks…” Adam bit his thumb nail.

“We could go shopping.” Shiro suggested.

“It’s too late to go now.” he sighed, slumping his shoulders “Maybe I shouldn’t go…”

“Come with me.” boldly, Shiro took him by the hand. He gently pushed Adam until he sat on the bed as soon as they’ve entered Shiro’s bedroom and he started throwing clothes on the space beside Adam.

“Pick one.” he finally said.

Once they had similar body structure, now Shiro’s clothes were baggy on him. He found one jeans that fit him well, but every shirt he put on would reach his thighs, which was not flattering. He missed his body shape.

A colorful shirt picked his interest. He took off his inside shirt. Something fell to the floor with a heavy sound. Shiro was looking at him, eyes wide and mouth hanging open. Adam covered his chest, ashamed of his severely burnt body.

“Turn around!!” he yelled.

“Oh, I’m sorry.” Shiro answered, turning around as Adam told him to do.

Shiro was beet red; Adam, on the other hand, wanted to hide his body as soon as he could. He put the shirt on, angrily, trying to ignore the fact that the fabric smelled like Shiro and soap.

“You can see me now.”

“Adam, I-I” Shiro muttered “You look good.”

“Don’t lie to me.” Adam folded a jacket on his forearm and started heading out.

“Wait!”

He got close to Adam, making a knot on the side of the shirt. Adam was distracted by his closeness, Shiro’s breath hitting his neck, his perfume and the smell of his shampoo.

“Done.” Shiro said, proud of himself.

“What did you do?” he frowned at the sight of his shirt.

The way Shiro tied it, it looked like a crop top, as he used to wear all the time back in the days. It was nostalgic but annoying.

“I’m old and my body looks like I’m Deadpool.” Adam tried to be reasonable and ended up with a nervous tic on his eye when Shiro slowly shook his head. “Stop it, Takashi! I’m not who I was and it’s ridiculous!” he raised his voice.

“You really don’t know it, right?” he sighed “You are gorgeous and I missed you in crop tops. Could you indulge me, just for today? If you feel uncomfortable we undo the knot, okay?”

These words shut him for good. He just silently let Shiro conduce him through the corridors of the Garrison. They were stopped multiple times by cadets fanboying over the great war hero and new paladin, Adam, making him surprised. He was never the one to be treated with that much respect without fear before; hearing people praise him for surviving was like being brought to life every time. A teacher passed through them, their head following Adam as he passed.

“See? They think I’m hideous.” he hissed to Shiro, who laughed.

“You’re kidding me? That teacher is eyeing you up ever since your training started.” his expression clouded up

“Are you jealous?” Adam smirked, not believing his eyes.

“I rather not answer it.” he cleared his throat.

Adam gripped Shiro’s hand, smiling in that rare bright way Shiro loved. The white haired man melted, smiling back. No matter how many years passed, he would always answer to that expression, and so would his heart, locked somewhere only Adam could enter; he was the one who had the keys.

Shiro took his time looking at Adam’s profile; they were walking side by side, near each other. He had the urge to kiss his temple, his cheek. In the end, he was satisfied with looking at him and engrave his older face on his memory. Shiro had no intention of letting go this time; if Adam allowed him he would memorise his features forever.

If he ever deserved to be trusted by Adam again, he would not throw this chance away. He had no courage to be optimistic after all; he could only hope.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaand I'm late again! I guess it's becoming a habit, but you know? Exams, gotta study for that.  
> If you are reading this story since the beginning, you're a real hero! And I thank you, from the bottom of my heart.  
> Hope you enjoyed this chapter, see you tomorrow!!  
> ~Lee


	9. Day 9 : Door frame

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The door frame is as far as Shiro can go when it comes to Adam. After all the damage he caused on their relationship, he can't gather the necessary courage to tell how much he missed him, how much he want to take their relationship to a not new, but renewed step. The door frame is where he stays, waiting for Adam to open it.  
> Except it is already open.

**Day 9 (daydream): Door frame**

Adam and Shiro arrived at Keith’s around 19h. Adam was trying to hide himself inside the jacket, fidgeting. Shiro faced him, both on the doormat, their breath mingling together. Adam’s nose was red from the cold. His eyes focused on Shiro’s; there’s where his warmth gathers, twirling inside his hazel eyes like twin flames.

“You look handsome.” he whispered for what seemed to be the umpteenth time since they left Garrison.

Adam rolled his eyes and rung the bell. Lance opened the door, a wide smile on his face. As soon as they crossed it, Zola ran to Adam, hugging his leg. He picked her and raised her in the air, spinning around the entrance. Her leg accidentally hit Shiro’s head, and she covered her mouth with her hands.

“Sowwy.” she opened her arms and Shiro caught her; Zola touched the place he got hit, concerned “Does it hurt, uncle Shiwwo?”

“No, I’m fine.” he smiled to her “She’s improving fast, isn’t she?” he asked to Keith, who came from the kitchen bringing a dish with kitchen gloves on. The black paladin nodded.

Zola was almost six years old. However, she spent her first years on space, surrounded by aliens and sorrowful people and that made her speech skills the same as a child with half her age. In two months she was improving considerably, and that made her two dads proud of her.

“Has he—” Adam whispered to Lance, pointing at the dish Keith was settling on the table.

“No worries, we ordered it. He didn’t cook.” Lance laughed at Adam’s exaggerated relief.

“Sorry I didn’t bring anything.”

“We invited you, it’s on us. Be right back.” he winked, hurrying to help his husband.

“Where’s Kayla?” Shiro searched for her.

“I told her three hours ago to write a letter to Santa. She’s locked on her room since then.” Keith said, hands on his hips; despite his exasperation, everyone could see the smile on his lips. He loved his daughters more than anything else — except for Lance. Since love wasn’t a competition, all of them ended up winning, and the prize was the best version of himself he could ever give. “Adam, why don’t you call her for dinner?”

He headed to the girls room, knocking on the door.

“Come in!” Kayla said.

“Are you done with your letter?” he asked, entering the room. She looked upset. “Can I sit here?” he pointed to her bed. She nodded. “Now, what’s happening, dear?”

“What if Santa doesn’t think I deserve receiving a Christmas gift?” he asked in a low voice, staring at her pillow as if it was offend her.

“Why would he think it?” he felt responsible for that girl as a mentor and even a friend. He hasn't made friends who survived the galra prison, so he valued those who did. And Kayla was a strong and sweet human being, she was worthy of all the good things Keith and Lance could offer her.

“You know why, Adam.” she sighed, hugging her knees and hiding her face. “I helped the aliens to do bad things.” her muffled voice barely could be heard by Adam.

“Kayla, you did not help them, they were forcing you.”

“I know” she raised her head, annoyed “but what if Santa doesn’t?”

“He knows every kids heart, and you have the most beautiful one, okay?” he blinked a few times, trying to avoid his tears. He too had to do things he wasn’t proud of, but he was a survivor; he would do everything to fix the mistakes he had done while under the druids control.

“No, that’s Zola.” she smirked.

“You’re right.” they laughed “No, seriously; you’re the best. You saved me.” he cleared his throat, feeling emotional. She had tears swimming on her eyes. “Let’s head to the dining room, the others are waiting for us.”

“Oh, no!” she said, pouting “I didn’t write my letter.”

“I can help you, after dinner. Let’s go.”

  


“What took you so long?” Lance asked, curious.

Adam looked at Kayla, who shrugged her shoulders.

“I had no idea of what I should write in my letter. Adam was helping me.” she grinned, dimples on her cheek just like her sister; she twisted her multicoloured braid, walking to seat beside Lance.

“ _Uncle_ Adam.” Keith corrected her.

“There’s no need for that, Keith. We’ve been calling each other by our names for a long time.” he sat, facing Shiro.

Talking to his small friend made Adam forget about Shiro for a few minutes. However, looking at him forced thoughts of him on his head. He didn’t understand why Shiro was so hesitant in taking their relationship further. Maybe what he meant in the hospital was that they should stay as friends as they originally were as Garrison students. They were family; Adam was Shiro’s first real family member. What if now that he had the paladins and the aimed title of hero, he realised they weren’t meant to be together.

“ _What if my looks scared him off and he was only complimenting me because he was feeling guilty—_ ” he bit his lips, lost in thoughts “ _I never struggled with my own mind running wild, I won’t start now… Patience yield focus_.” he started chanting the sentence his dad used to tell him when he was impatient or anxious.

Shiro started eating, chatting with the other sitting around the table. They were happy, after years together, and their family increased by two. It was as if they always belonged there with them — despite the unfortunate events that brought the kids to them — and the universe was in balance. Adam silently ate, disconnected.

He poked Adam with his foot, attracting his attention. He invited Adam to join the conversation with head gestures.

Adam participated the conversation; and it was Shiro’s turn to withdraw. He couldn’t avoid focusing on Adam, his hazel eyes and his usual lopsided grin that only showed when he was feeling comfortable with the environment.

Shiro imagined them sitting on a similar table in a house of their own, as they had planned on buying countless times in the past. He imagined hosting parties to the other paladins, making Adam feel more included in his new family. Shiro wanted to spend their weekend nights cuddling on the couch and watch TV while drinking hot chocolate. Those images filled his eyes, a mix of sadness and pain as he yearned for that dream scenario.

“Shiro, are you okay?” Keith asked, worried. “You were making a funny face.”

He blinked a couple of times, grinning sheepishly.

“I guess I’m more tired than I thought.”

Adam could see through his lie. The expression he had on was a sorrowful one; maybe that was the root of their proximity issue. Normally, Shiro was a person of action while Adam was the planning type; their roles inverted.

“If you want to, we can call it a day…” Lance suggested.

“No!” Shiro raised his voice and then blushed “I can drink coffee later. I’m not as young as you guys.”

“I mean, look at his white hair.” Adam jokingly stated, making them laugh.

They resumed their cheerful conversation.

  
  


It was past midnight when Shiro walked Adam to his bedroom, reluctant to say good night to him. They’ve established a pleasant mood between them. Shiro was distracted, driving, and Adam would steal a glance of his profile every now and then. They stopped in front of the door facing each other, saying nothing. The time froze for them and they closed the distance between them…

“Good night, Adam. See you tomorrow.” Shiro said, against his will. He wasn’t confident of deserving to be forgiven yet.

“‘Night.” Adam entered, frustrated.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was it! It's one of the few occasions I've actually put a chapter name that made sense.  
> I love writing about Klance's daughters and klance in general. Hope they'll appear more in the future.  
> See you tomorrow!  
> ~Lee


	10. Day 10: Window shopping

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shiro is tortured by his indecisiveness. He wants to be with Adam more than anything. He is reduced to a boy window shopping, desiring he could fulfill his wish of becoming something else to Adam; at the same time, he feels like he's doing the right thing by remaining as Adam's friend. His obstacle is himself and Adam is getting impatient.

**Day 10 (free day): Window shopping**

Shiro knocked on Adam’s door early in the morning, being greeted with his sleepy face.

“Good morning, sleepyhead, time to wake up and fix you hair.” Shiro started rearranging his hair. “We have to go.”

He loved to wake up early, go jogging around the building and then taking the most delicious breakfast. He was feeling great this morning; he rehearsed several times in front of the mirror ways of calling Adam out on a casual date, as friends. Shiro couldn’t expect anything else from him.

“Where are we going?” Adam yawned and leaned on the doorframe; arms crossed, eyes closed.

“Shopping.” Shiro said, grinning widely.

“Yeah...” he was starting to fall asleep, standing up.

“Adam, get ready!” he complained; Shiro threw a shirt on his face and he jolted, waking up.

“That was mean, Takashi!” he whined.

“Get. Ready.” he laughed at that forty years old man pouting because he wanted to go back to bed.

One thing about Adam that people didn’t usually assume is that he was a heavy sleeper and struggled with waking up. If Shiro didn’t wake him up everyday, his three alarm clocks wouldn’t work on him and he would be late. He was cute; he used to blink repeatedly, trying to keep his eyes open, and his gibberish was the funniest. It always gave Shiro a silly smile.

“I’m going.” he prolonged the sentence, dragging his feet as he walked inside.

“Here, let me help.” Shiro took off his sleeping shirt and slipped the other in. “Go put your pants.”

He obeyed, on automatic. Shiro sat on his bed and waited for him; Adam was gaining his consciousness back while he tied his shoes.

Shiro was there, asking him on a date. Adam was joyful; he was making his best efforts to show he was open to try deepening their relationship with no clear response from Shiro, who was reluctant. He had noticed Shiro looked at him, thinking he wasn’t paying attention, but he didn’t say anything. They’ve reached a comfortable place with their friendship; still, it wasn’t enough. Those glances enticed him to expect something else.

Adam washed his face, fully awake and ready to enjoy this day to the fullest. Maybe if he gave enough hints, Shiro would understand he wanted him as well. It’s not as if he couldn’t act on his wish to date Shiro, in fact, he madly wanted to kiss the man. However, he knew from trying to eliminate their distance that Shiro would close himself inside his walls, not letting him in no matter what. Adam felt it was the same situation they had been through when they were teenagers; he couldn’t figure out what exactly was bothering Shiro. Whatever it was, it was getting on his nerves.

  


They’ve spent the whole morning shopping, bathed in winter’s shy sun rays. Shiro wanted to buy everyone’s christmas presents, so they did it first. Adam would shake his head, judging Shiro everytime he bought another present to their nieces. What Shiro didn’t notice is that Adam was doing the same thing while shaming on him for fun. Shiro finally discovered it, he was baffled. Adam laughed at his fake anger face.

From there, they headed to a clothing store. Fashion didn’t change a thing in those fifteen years he spent out of Earth. He went to the the sweater session, picking the most ridiculous one he could find, and getting a matching one to Shiro, who raised an eyebrow.

“Are you serious?”

“We’re uncles now, we have to dress accordingly.” he smirked.

“So I’m allowed to make dad jokes?”

“No. Don’t even try.” he vetoed it without thinking twice.

Shiro always came up with the weirdest puns ever made; Adam would try to ignore it and then fail miserably, rolling his eyes and sighing. That made Shiro laugh even more.

Adam was remembering Shiro’s awful jokes by the time the man returned, carrying a pile of clothes on his left arm.

“Look, I got you some underwear.” he took a hanger off the pile with the floating hand, putting in front of Adam’s lower parts.

Two older women passed near them in that moment. They pointed on their direction, giggling. Adam snatched the underwear from his hand, embarrassed.

“You’re not my mother!” he hissed. All he wanted was to bury his head on the ground, as a sad teenager.

“Sorry about that.” he shrugged his shoulders, not a bit apologetic.

Hanger by hanger, Adam was taking clothes off the pile.

“Are you back on your old style?” he asked, staring at a button-up polka-dot shirt.

“Now I’m on the age to use it.”

“I’d advise you to wear _this_ —” Adam pointed at the shirt he was holding “on your 60’s.”

Shiro found a new appreciation on Adam’s sardonic smile. It was as if they were teens again, making fun of each other's clothings and laughing about silly things. It wasn’t about nostalgy, it was about the feeling Adam provoked on him. He felt like he was floating on clouds, like he was new to all this.

Adam was indeed his first and only significant other; nonetheless, he didn’t expect to awake a side of him he no longer knew that existed. He was wrong by thinking he fully understood himself.

They’ve given their shopping a lunch break. It was sunny and they’ve chosen to sit outside and enjoy the cool breeze. After their dishes arrived, they slow ate everything. Shiro offered his fries to Adam, holding one in the air as an invite. Adam tried to bite it; Shiro withdrew his hand before Adam could do it.

“You’re such a child.” Adam smirked.

He grabbed Shiro’s wrist and bit the fry he was holding. Shiro kept staring at Adam’s hand on his wrist until he broke the contact. They chatted mostly about those years Shiro spent in space as the black paladin, and a sparkle of enthusiasm lit up on Adam’s eyes. He asked about alien spaceships and their energy source, getting a complete explanation. Adam was practically bouncing on his chair after Shiro told him about his floating arm altean technology.

They’ve shared the dessert, flirting more than actually eating it. Adam was fulfilled in more ways than one.

  


At night, Adam was struggling with the huge amount of paper bags he carried on his hands. Shiro could carry them on only one arm. The other one made the bags slip and fall to the floor.

For the first time since he got back, he felt like he was finally making Earth his home again; he was reborning as a human, not a consequence to the traumas he had passed through. He felt stronger, therapy was helping him.

As usual, the tension between them hit the maximum in the moment they’ve reached Adam’s door. The place where they said goodbye, drowning into their frustration. Engulfed on the atmosphere, Adam once again was the one to take the — literal — step forward, touching Shiro’s chest with his on. Their faces were aligned, eye on eye, and the distance between them was nonexistent. Shiro closed his eyes, a pained sigh scaping. Adam let the bags fall to the floor, putting his arms around Shiro’s neck, kissing him deeply. He dived inside his mouth. Their hearts beated loudly, Shiro’s inebriating smell was so familiar and yet so new to him.

Shiro put his hand on his waist, pulling the shirt with his hand and clenching it into a fist. He wanted to get closer, as closer as they could without becoming the same body.

Adam broke away from the kiss, breathless and in a daze.

“Takashi…”

Hearing his name made Shiro snap out of the spell cast by the moment; he put his hand between them and gently pulled Adam away.

“No, please.” Adam moaned, clinging to him.

“Goodnight, Adam.” Shiro said in a harsh tone.

“Fine, Takashi.” he picked up his bags on the floor, feeling rejected and undesirable “I understand everything now.”

Shiro touched his shoulder and Adam shook him off.

“I’m sorry, Adam.” his voice was pained.

Adam turned his back to Shiro as a way of protecting himself.

“Come back when you know what you want.” he said, as the door slided slowly, separating them “Or don’t come back.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey hey hey!  
> I'm here again. I'm sorry if today's chapter wasn't that goo, my mind is somewhere else. I kinda liked the result of this one. A right amount of sweetness and angst, very balanced.  
> Hope you enjoyed this and see you tomorrow!!  
> ~Lee


	11. Day 11: Intervention

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shiro hasn't shown up in from of Adam for a couple of weeks, arising the feeling of rejection inside Adam.  
> Then their family appeared, intending to make an intervention on their relationship.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today’s chapter is going to be a little bit shorter than the other because I was studying for a test I’ll have in a few hours and I’d like to at least get some sleep before I do it.
> 
> About the storyline: the previous chapters were ambiented around november. Now I’m entering december. I’ll explain when I decide to skip some time.

**Day 11 (first snow): Intervention**

Shiro hasn’t come by his door for a couple of weeks; it hurted more than Adam could express with words. However damage the rejection caused, he wasn’t going to let it show on his face, no matter what. He continued to live his routine in pursuit of his teacher certification.

The weirdest part of his daily life was certainly how people talked to him or even take photos with him. Adam was considered a war hero, even if he disagreed with the title. He was never treated like that on any place he went during his life. With respect? Maybe. But worship was new to him. And ennerving.

As he was about to reach the doorknob to open his class door, a hand on his shoulder stopped him. He looked above his shoulder in alert, his body tense. He still had the war reflexes.

Adam saw a teacher, one he’d rather avoid than become friends with. Every time they happened to cross each other’s path, they would eye him up. Adam would have felt very flattered if not for their habit of approaching him when Shiro was not beside him. As if he was Shiro’s property and could only be sociable if his owner wasn’t around. Moreover, they were a little too touchy for his liking.

“Good morning.” said them with a wide smile.

“Morning.” Adam mumbled, troubled.

The hand on his shoulder slipped to the fold of his elbows as he turned around to face the teacher. Shivers ran down his spine; Adam grabbed their wrist in a strong grip. The teacher winced.

“Adam?” said his savior, Lance, coming from the corner of the hallway.

Adam gave the teacher a warning stare, releasing their hand and heading towards Lance’s direction, a yellowish smile on his face. Adam was tense after that unfortunate encounter.

“Hey, Lance.” he greeted Lance “Can I help with something?”

“Actually…” he scratched the back of his head awkwardly. “Would you like to grab lunch with me? Keith is out with the girls today and I’m feeling lonely.”

“What about the other paladins?” Adam asked, raising an eyebrow.

“The others?” his voice cracked and he cleared his throat “They’re... busy.”

Adam wasn’t buying it. Not that he didn’t enjoy spending time with the paladins, but his not so casual approach made him think of one word: intervention. It was his first time facing family intervention and he could affirm he wouldn’t like it.

“Okay.” Adam sighed “I pay for it.”

As soon as Lance sat down, he was fidgeting. Poor man, having the difficult job of talking to Adam.

“What does Shiro want?” Adam finally asked a while before the waiter brought their dishes.

Lance almost choked.

“Shiro, who? I-I-I—”

“I’m sorry you have to be his messenger.” he kindly smiled to his ex-student, trying to make him feel at ease. “Although I have no intention of complying his selfish wishes.”

“Listen, Adam…” Lance put his fork down, concerned “Shiro is struggling with his insecurities right now.”

“Oh, really?” Adam words were dripping in sarcasm. He didn’t want to hear about Shiro’s struggles if the white haired man was ignoring their own. He again felt like he was being played, and he hated that feeling. It increased as he thought the problem was him, his body and his role on their first attempt of a relationship having ended with Shiro leaving him to go to space.

Adam couldn’t handle the rejection as well as he did when he was younger. And he sure didn’t want to pass through the same thing. If Shiro wouldn’t fully get into this, Adam wasn’t going to bet his heart again.

“He didn’t ask me to come here today.” Lance lowered his gaze to his plate, speaking softly “It was Keith. Shiro doesn’t know we’re here.”

“And what’s your purpose then?”

“Shiro doesn’t want hurt you again.” he blurted and stared at Adam wide-eyed. “I shouldn’t have said that.”

“Excuse me?!”

Adam expected anything but that. Of all the reasons Shiro could have to avoid him and back off, he was refraining from acting because he was thinking about Adam's feelings. And he hurt his feelings by trying to protect them, which made this whole thing laughable. In a pained way.

“I bet he didn't discuss his insecurities with you, right?” Lance breathed slowly and Adam nodded “This is worse than I thought.”

“He's a disaster.” Adam was exasperated with Shiro's lack of communication skills. “Anyways, thank you for telling me that. I was freaking out trying to figure out what have I done wrong.”

“I can imagine that.” Lance laughed “I've passed through it with Keith as well."

“Did you?” Adam chuckled. He could see it happening; Keith and Shiro were alike in so many ways that no one could doubt they were brothers.

“Yes, in the beginning… Nowadays it seldom happens.” the red paladin had the softest smile on his face, his eyes swimming in the past. Then he looked at Adam and went back to reality “I actually came here to tell you that Keith is trying to convince Shiro to stop suffering on his own.”

“He's going to need good luck.” Adam said, sarcastic “To have his younger brother giving him a pep talk… He's truly a disaster.” Adam didn't know he was smiling fondly as he finished talking.

They've enjoyed the rest of their meal; reducing their conversation to small talk about the advancements on Garrison, the paladins. Adam asked about the girls, happy to know Zola was getting better and better on her school activities and talking. Kayla was a challenging teenager, but so were Keith. He was more than ready to deal with her temper, mostly with patience and dialogue.

They parted ways. Adam was feeling lighter than he had been on weeks.

The wind outside was refreshing; he had put more clothes layers than he really needed in the morning. He sat on a bench outside, in Garrison's artificial garden. It was more beautiful than what he remembered. That was the place on which he had his first date with Shiro. He could see their younger selves laying on the grass, laughing at the bump on Adam's head; the pain from being hit by a toy rocket fading away…

A snowflake slowly descended from the skies, landing on his nose and melting. He looked up, seeing the snow falling as in a dream scenario. He felt blessed by nature, in that moment. 

He lowered his eyes while following a flake going down and spotted a person in front of him.

Not any person, but the one who always occupied his mind: Shiro.

“Hi, Adam.”

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's Dec 12th but here I am posting this chapter  
> I had to study for a test and could finish it. I do intend to come by later and post day 12. Wait for it!  
> Hope you enjoyed this chapter.  
> See ya later  
> ~Lee


	12. Day 12: Like I’m gonna lose you

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adam was outside, gathering his thoughts, when the first snow of the year started. He thought he didn't stand a chance against Shiro's insecurities, but suddenly he appears in front of him, opening their future possibilities.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is inspired by Meghan Trainor's song (https://genius.com/5024758)

**Day 12 (song/lyrics inspired): Like I’m gonna lose you**

Shiro’s presence there made time move slower for Adam, like a movie scene. A thin layer of snow covered the grass; the paladin’s coat was wet and he felt cold. Despite that, he was sweating nervously. He couldn’t break their eye contact, even if it made his eyes dry.

“Are you going to stand there, silent?” he finally broke the spell cast by the weather. his heart thumping loud on his chest.

“Adam I—” Shiro, sat beside him on the bench, running his fingers through his hair “I’ve been so stupid.”

“Yes, you were.” Adam said matter-of-factly.

“Ouch.” Shiro winced “I guess I deserved that…” his shoulder dropped and he stared at the palms of his empty hands. “Adam, since you’ve been back, I couldn’t think about anything else than you. No, I’m wrong. I’ve always been thinking about you, ever since I first saw you.” Adam knew he was being sincere because Shiro is incapable of lying. “I… Adam, I can’t bring myself to hurt you again and cause you more grief… I can’t, Adam, I’m a horrible person…” Shiro hid his face, sobbing.

The silver paladin slowly touched the man's forearms, holding them softly and removing them from his face. He wiped away the tears on Shiro’s face, mumbling comforting words to him until he calmed down.

“Takashi, listen: I’m not afraid of getting hurt.” Adam cupped Shiro cheeks, kissing the tip of his red nose “I’ve spent so much time of my life holding this pain inside of me, while I ignored yours. I should’ve said I was going to wait for you, or going with you. I should have been there for you.” he touched Shiro’s forehead with his own, their steam breathe mingling together. Tears warmed his face up as they flowed down his face; Adam bit his lips.

“You did nothing wrong, I swear. It was my fault, I abandoned you.” Shiro put his hand on Adam’s neck, bringing him closer. “I can’t fix what I’ve done and I can’t stop loving you. I tried, for your sake, but I can’t. I loved the past you; now I love you even more, knowing the present you.” he sniffled, shyly smiling “I’m a mess.”

“Yes, you are. You are my very much hot mess, Takashi” Adam wanted to kiss him; he didn’t want the same result as the last time, so he waited his initiative. “I love you too, you know? Do you understand how frustrating it was for me to hold myself back?”

“Can I allow myself to be with you?” the white haired man lowered his gaze.

“Is the sky blue?” he rolled his eyes.

“Not really.” Shiro chuckled.

“Takashi!” he found himself laughing.

They were both a disaster.

“Can I kiss you?” Shiro asked, after they’ve stopped laughing as children.

“I thought you were never going to ask!”

Shiro kissed him slowly at first, savouring his lips while wrapping his hand on his beloved’s hair. Adam’s hands slipped down on Shiro’s back, twisting his shirt inside his fists. The grizzled man deepened the kiss, boldly exploring his mouth with his tongue. Adam couldn’t keep under control when he started kissing this first and only love; this time wasn’t different. Shiro’s floating arm rested on his thigh and he softly pulled the other man’s hair, tilting his head to have better access to his mouth. His soft and wet lips were slippery, and Shiro couldn’t avoid moaning in response.

They separated, breathless, as the snow fell more intense than before. It was cold, but the pure white twilight was stunning, almost worthy of freezing in there, if they could remain close to each other.

“We should go inside.” Shiro’s husky voice made a shiver run down Adam’s spine.

“You’re right.” the glasses man intertwined his fingers with Shiro’s as they walked inside Garrison headquarters. “And Takashi?”

“What?” he sounded lazy, his hooded eyes focused on his man.

“Don’t ever make me think I’ve lost you again.”

“Never again.” Shiro smiled softly, laying his head on his shoulder, tripping on his feet as he tried to take a step forward.

They bursted out laughing at how silly they looked. They were lucky that the corridors were empty and they could be as touchy and flirty as they wanted. Shiro wasn’t a fan of PDA; the more reason they had to enjoy the pre-holiday emptiness.

Shiro’s heart was about to burst with the overwhelming emotion. He was so lucky to have been gathered with someone like Adam by the hands of the almighty destiny; the more he thought about, the more he regretted ever thinking he needed to prove something to someone back then. Although he felt bitter about his past actions, he decided to let those weights behind him and start anew. Adam deserved it, and so did he.

He was never letting him go again.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back!!  
> Hope you enjoyed this chapter! It was shorter than usual because it was focused on one scene, ut I'm satisfied with the result. Thank you for reading as always and see you tomorrow.  
> ~Lee


	13. Day 13: Silver king

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> (This chapter has a connection with the AU I’ve made for keithtober, but it can be read without reading it first.)

**Day 13 (AU free form): Silver king**

Shiro was the bravest knight of his kingdom; a remarkable, merciful leader. Aside from that, he was the king’s youngest son, third in line of succession. Countless times he had defended his father’s land against invasion, leading the frontlines. After months he returned home only to find out his best friend, a minor rank noble, was forcefully sent on a mission to rescue a fairy tale princess from a dragon and bring her to the crown prince.

The king never liked Shiro because he had his mom’s features; she was a noble from a foreign country on east who eloped the ruler as a political alliance. Nothing the youngest kid ever did seemed to change the loathing expression on his father’s eyes. Differently from the firstborn, he was seen as useless. Despite no knowing the king’s reasons, the knight knew he had sent Lance on a suicidal mission with the purpose of affecting his son. It worked.

Without even having time to unpack his stuff, he got on his horse and left at the break of dawn. Maybe Lance found a village and didn’t know how to go back. Or perhaps he had fallen in love with a beautiful villager and remained there.

Shiro refused to think his friend was dead.

The path he was trailing inside the Cursed Forest was treacherous. Many times, he was menaced by wild creatures of the forest. He wanted to reach the tower by sunset; it’d be unwise to face the dangers of the night in an unknown and dark place. Not to mention the wonders he was unaware of, hidden in the shadows, waiting for a moment of distraction to attack. Shiro was not a beginner, he wouldn’t make that mistake.

A constant increasing sound made him stop. A twig snapped and a neigh could be heard. A scared horse without a rider broke the circle of trees, scaring his own horse, Tsubasa. She was a gift his mom gave him on his teens, one year before she passed away. Tsubasa was a memory of her country in the east, she said.

He shushed her and got off of her, approaching the nervous one. Shiro calmed them down first, recognising them afterwards. It was Lance’s. He exhaled, trembly.

If that wasn’t enough trouble, horseshoes on the dirt road alerted him. The dust raised by the newcomming threat made the knight unable to see who was coming until it was too late.

“Identify yourself!” Shiro shouted at the man on the horse.

“I have no reason to do it.” he said in an aloof tenor voice.

The dust was starting to set. He saw a man in a cape, hiding his face with a hood. The visible part of his body was his legs alone, covered by a shiny silver armor; it showed he had status.

“Would you step out of the way?” said the unfamiliar haughty figure “You are blocking the path.”

Shiro didn't answer, worried about Lance's horse that freaked out again. Tsubasa was nervous, pulling the back of Shiro's cape. He didn't understand the reason; she was a war horse, pretty much nothing could scare the animal. He scanned the place; the one possible threat was the man in front of him. It was just a human; the knight firmly believe he wasn't causing their fear.

How wrong was him.

“Didn’t you hear me, peasant?” annoyance was clear on his voice. Shiro glared at him — which was difficult to do when he didn’t see the man’s face — and went back to talk to Lance’s horse.

The hooded man unsheathed his sword; the metal sound alerted Shiro. He had his sword in hand by the time the other was ready. All those years battling made him the fastest. Tsubasa put herself between the stranger and him, rearing.

“Easy, girl.” he had never seen her act this way in battles. He pulled her reins; she obeyed and retroceded, letting his way free.

The man was surprised as his own horse, a black stallion, got scared because of Tsubasa and almost dropped him. The hood he had on fell. He was stunning; a golden crown similar to a headband around his curled brown hair, indicating his status as a king, which was weird in every sense. There was no nearer kingdom and the man wasn’t equipped for a long travel. Not exclusively that: people who travel alone don’t display their status or they’d be put in jeopardy. Shiro didn’t use his crown outside. The man seemed uncomfortable now that he was exposed.

Even though he was mesmerising, Shiro shouldn’t have noticed the way his cold hazel eyes pierced through his soul; it had a supernatural element to them. He had scars on his face; his lips were…

“ _It's no time for that!_ ” Shiro scolded himself.

Adam was bothered. His younger brother vanished, leaving his responsibilities as the crown prince to go back to the god forsaken tower where he spent centuries of his life before Adam went to him on the last decade. Recently, their father was killed and he became the king of the Cursed Forest as well as their true kingdom beyond the veil; he needed his brother to help him out. He spent two years in the court and said he wanted to rest, going back to the tower. It had been years since then.

Then, a strange man was blocking the path that leaded to the tower. He hated to travel as a human; still, he had to conceal his presence. To increase his annoyance, this sort of misfortune accompanied him every time he did it, making him hate this kind of transportation even more.

Nonetheless, that was the better misfortune that crossed his path. The knight was breathtaking in every way. Adam had the impression he was dangerous by the way he silently defied him, ignoring his orders and by how fast he had his sword pointing on his direction. He didn't flinch or changed his alert posture, meaning he wasn't afraid of his status. That pleased Adam’s instincts; enlightening his mood.

He put his sword back to place, a smirk on his face. Shiro was confused. First the man seemed ready for a fight and then he withdrew without saying anything. It was as if the knight wasn't enough threat and it pissed him off.

“I don't have time to fight you. I have somewhere to go.” Adam said, looking down at him.

“Me too.” Shiro answer, angry “I have important things to do.”

“Blocking the path with horses isn't that important.” he raised his eyebrows. “Nor dignified.”

“This is my friend's.” he put his sword back in the scabbard “He got lost in the woods and I'm searching for him.”

The information piqued his interest; the king dismounted and approached the horse. “What was his destination?”

Much to the knight's surprise, they calmed down. Tsubasa, that seemed to fear the unknown man, calmed down. Shiro couldn't precise why he sensed the energy emanating from him and warming his body on waves, and yet he did; his aura was almost palpable.

When he glanced at the king, he gasped; his previously hazel eyes were amber with vertical pupils. He blinked and it was gone. Shiro mouth was hanging open.

Adam knew he almost got discovered; the color drained from the man's face.

“There you go.” he nonchalantly handed the knight the reins. Their hand touched for a brief second and he got goosebumps. The king didn't know what kind of wizardry the other man was doing, but it was certainly dangerous. His heart thumped loud on his chest.

Shiro had heard of love at first sight, although he had no idea of the electric wave at his mere touch. There was something dangerous about that man and instead of scared, he was thrilled.

“Thank you.” he said, finding his voice.

Adam smiled to him, remembering too late that his pointy fangs would scare a ordinary human and closed his mouth. Shiro didn't lost the detail, naively wondering if it was a particularly of his.

“I should keep going if I want to reach my location soon.” the man didn't want to go. However, he needed to find his brother as fast as he could.

“Me too. Where are you headed to?” the knight tied Lance's horse to Tsubasa, eyes on the stranger the whole time. He wouldn't lower his guard, it would be unwise.

“North.”

“Me too.” he smiled and Adam melted a little.

They mounted their horses and followed the road. Shiro felt more at ease knowing he wasn't alone to face the dangers of the forest, not knowing how dangerous was the man beside him. He was lucky that the king had taken a liking to him and wouldn't deny any help. He was comfortable on his domain and no other creature would dare to defy someone stronger than them.

Hours passed and the full moon shined upon them. Tsubasa was slower now and Shiro didn't know how much longer she could go, not that he wanted to test it. He loved her as a friend and didn't want to treat her badly.

“I don't know if I can go any further. My horse didn't have the time to rest and I can't do this to her.”

The man stopped as well, sniffing the air. Shiro raised an eyebrow; still, he kept quiet. The king gave off the vibe that he didn't accept to be interrupted, no matter what strange thing he was doing.

“There is a tavern near here. Lucky you, it's the only one in the forest.” he gave the knight a soft smile. It was rare to see a human who deeply cared for animals to the point of putting himself in jeopardy instead of forcing their limits. “It's inside the forest, so watch your steps.”

“You seem to know your way around here.” Shiro observed, curious.

“You could say that.” he flashed the knight a smile.

The mystery drew him in. Who exactly was that man? He was almost scared of what he was going to discover.

Adam guided the way, surprised to be followed without complaint or questioning. He could be leading the knight to a trap and he wouldn't know until it was too late, albeit the king had the impression he wouldn't be caught unprepared. They entered the depths of the forest, and his supernatural eyes allowed him see the way. Their horses weren't too happy with walking blindly; soon the lights of the tavern showed them the way.

They entered the glade; the owner of the place, who had known him for centuries, was out of the building, waiting for him. He could acknowledge his powerful presence and hurried to him, since the king was his top priority. He nodded to the man, who nervously took his horse’s rein. Another servant took his companion’s.

“Please come in, my king.” he fearfully said, sweating. Adam was known to be merciful and rational; nonetheless, no one wanted to be caught on his bad side.

“I’m with a human.” he whispered to the man.

“I understand. I’ll get your table ready.” he slightly bowed to the king as he entered.The conversation stopped as soon as he closed the door behind him, and the atmosphere gave Shiro an eerie feeling. The small innkeeper opened the door for them “Your majesty may enter.” he looked at the knight disdainfully.

They had dinner while small talking. Differently for his usual reserved personality, Adam told Shiro about his brother and their life on the castle, while Shiro told him about his best friend, almost his kin, Lance. They shared their war stories and the sorrow that came along with it. Everything was as easy as breathing with them. Adam was sure some sort of spell was cast on him; he couldn’t gather the strength to escape from it nor did he want to be freed from it.

In the middle of their meal, they got interrupted by a troubled waitress.

“My Lord, we got a… uh… Issue.” she was sweating and avoiding eye contact, afraid of the consequences.

“What is it?” Shiro was right, the king did hate to be interrupted. His hazel eyes bordered the yellow, and that time it was clear to the knight. He shivered.

“Today the inn is full and… There’s only a bedroom.” she hurried to add “W-we can make other vacant right away.” she flinched when he raised an eyebrow to her.

“I think it won’t be necessary.” he glanced at the knight for a moment and then focused on the girl.

“T-The room has one bed.” her tension was starting to get to Shiro.

“Do you have a problem with that?” he asked the other man; his tone was dangerous and admitted no refusal.

“No” his sixth sense tingled for the first time since he met the hooded man on the road. Shiro was seeing a side of him that caused his self preservation to arise.

“We're fine with it.” the tension suddenly faded as he gave her a yellowish smile. The woman excused herself and hurried back to the kitchen.

The knight sighed, leaning back on his chair.

“Forgive me, I can be intense sometimes.” he said, sheepishly.

Shiro nodded, his eyes closed. The image of amber irises still burnt the back of his eyes. The king was suspicious in every single way and the prince didn't notice it because he was too worried about the crush he had on him.

“I should go to sleep, I depart as sun rises tomorrow.” he got up “if you excuse me.”

“Sure, I'll go in a minute.” the king wished he could stay; on the other hand, the dark circles under the man's eyes were visible. He then stays there, starting at his back while he was leaving the room. His broad back and large shoulders, the black hair reaching the collar of his shirt and he was not going to deny it — his butt! — turned the grown man into a teenager.

Adam was feeling guilty because he lost his temper, clearly scaring the man off. The moment the waitress interrupted the knight, that annoyed him. Shiro’s voice was a lullaby, raising above all the others in the rowdy room, and calmed the demon deep inside him to the point it lays down and rest, which was new to him. Still, the king saw him wide eyed and he knew he lost his chance. All he wanted to do was to follow the knight back to the room and explain it to him; he, who _hated_ to give anyone an explanation.

“I'm out of my mind…” Adam mumbled.

“I'm out of my mind.” said Shiro, running his fingers through his hair, taking off his armor.

That's the plausible explanation he could come up with after seeing the king's eyes changing colors. He wasn't a superstitious person and although he was looking for his friend who left on a fantastic adventure, he didn't believe there was such a thing as dragons and other magical creatures. Not until now.

“ _I'm sleep deprived, that's all._ ” he thought, laying on his side on the huge bed he was going to share with the stranger.

Not an hour had passed and the knight was half asleep by the time the other man entered the room. Adam was tipsy; it would last about a minute, his fast metabolism burnt the alcohol in no time. He fell backwards on bed, kicking off the boots and retreating his armor, which was in fact his scales. Despite the awareness of the king’s presence, Shiro couldn't move, his body sluggish. Almost a week of neglecting his sleep since he was in the battlefield caused that. He wanted to turn around and ask the man who — or what — exactly he was; not his eyes nor his mouth would open. An arm weighed around his waist; Adam hid his head on the prince's neck and put his bare torso against the man's back. He smell was a mix of forest and burnt wood.

Instead of being alarmed, the heat coming from Adam speeded Shiro’s drift to sleep faster. His smell was calming and their proximity wasn’t weird or awkward; it was natural.

It was in the middle of the night when something woke Adam up. His hazel eyes wandered around the dark room. There was no clear presence inside and yet he couldn't shake off the sensation that something was wrong; he had a few bad experiences in the past that made him believe his gut feeling. He rose up and covered his body with his shining scale armor. The door slowly creaked open and Shiro's sword was in his hand prior to waking up completely. The incoming danger was between the door and the knight, and the king got worried. He knew the man was more than capable of protecting himself; however, if it was a creature such as Adam, a human wouldn't stand a chance having them as a foe. They exchanged a look, and the king nodded to one of the room’s corner, the one next to the door. The prince frowned but obeyed, and they silently moved to their assigned positions; his was on the darkest corner of the room, where the light coming from the door didn’t reach. His hand was on his scabbard, he wasn’t going to risk his location unsheathing it.

The one who entered wasn’t expecting they were awake, a fool mistake solely made by humans. Shiro kicked the door and it hit the assassin; they fell and was put back up on their feet by Adam, who creeped in the darkness and held him by the collar of his shirt, his sword on the person’s throat.

“Who do you work for?” his menacing golden eyes made the assassin gasp. The fright on their face was replaced by a smirk as a loud crack made the room shake, wood and glass flying everywhere. “Shit!” he kicked them out and the impact of their back in the wall was enough to make them pass out.

“What the hell!—” the knight was there, mouth hanging, staring at the green scales creature that wiped half of the inn’s walls with his giant yellowish claws. Adam glanced at Shiro and checked out if the other man was okay; he jumped in the empty space where their bed was a while ago. “Hey!!”

Before he hit the ground, a equally enormous silver creature took his place, challenging the other, letting out a battle cry. Adam hated the pain of his bones cracking, his face getting longer and his body heat leaving him. The hissing of his scales covering his body, growing one by one, sent a shiver down his spine. He could clearly see the other one’s head above the trees, fire coming out of his mouth as he answered the challenge sent by the king.

“A dragon…” Shiro covered his mouth, astonished. He could never foresee such a turn of events, even if someone told him. “They _are_ real!” excitement rushed through his veins. Such powerful creatures no one believed anymore lived right beside them, inside human bodies!

The king focused his amber eyes on him, his vertical pupils contracting. He was worried about the man — and everyone else in the inn — getting hurt because of him. Adam noticed in that moment he was careless and attracted unwanted attention; Shiro’s presence distracted him from his royal position, which was irresponsible to say the least. His father was murdered and the kingdom befell on his hands, putting his crowned head to prize. He had concealed his presence for so long that being put under the scrutiny of the other cold hearted lizards were a foreign sensation to him. And he dragged the poor man to the mess his life was; he couldn’t forgive himself.

“ _I’ll protect you._ ” he wordlessly affirmed. Another claw blow made his body tremble. He _had_ to focus.

He opened his wings, the wind provoked by them caused some trees to fly. The green dragon’s open mouth tried to reach the point they connected to his body. Adam bit their neck, impulsing both of them up and put some distance between the menace and the knight.

Meanwhile, Shiro shook the assassin awake, and they tried to run away, unsuccessfully.

“Who hired you?” he asked in a low, deathly voice.

“It was the duke of—” they shrugged her shoulders “I don’t know, some stupid dragon name.” the cocky smile he received made him want to punch them.

“And what does he want?” once again, he shook them and they coughed.

“Hey, careful there! I think your _friend_ —” Shiro blushed, and the shit eating grin was back on the assassin’s face “broke some ribs.”

“Say it!” he grinds his teeth, trying to be patient.

“Okay, hot head! The duke whatever name it is wants the king’s head to become allies with the Arus kingdom.” the blank expression on Shiro’s face made them shiver, fearing for their life for the first time in a while. “Could you let me go? My job was to distract the man, I have nothing to do with the rest of it. I don’t know anything else, I swear!”

The knight released the assassin, who sighed in relief. He couldn’t believe his ears. His father, ruler of the kingdom of Arus, was planning something, he knew it! For months, his actions couldn’t be more suspicious, and he had the perfect excuse to send Shiro away all those months and avoid his questions. And now was too late to do something about it as it could be the last time he saw the dragon king alive.

“ _What if Lance is dead?_ ” the mere thought frightened him. He didn’t want to lose another loved one, even more if the only mistake he’s ever made was to be friends with Shiro.

He shook his head and headed downstairs through a very unstable staircase. People run from a place to the other, except they’re not… Human? Like a spell broke, faes, dwarfs and every creature he assumed to be a myth hurried to get out of the inn. The fully armored knight headed to the stables, or what remained of them, a torch in hands; Tsubasa was nowhere at sight.

“Oh, no…” he took a deep breath and was about to go out to search for her when he spotted the king’s horse. He approached the scared animal “Easy, boy.” he got a hold of his reins and mounted the horse. He immediately got quiet and expectant. Shiro heeled his sides softly as he entered the forest, whistling loud. Night creatures that hid in the shadows would either imitate the sound or avoid him. He kept searching for something, be it the silver dragon on his horse.

Adam was winning the fight. Which was not difficult, considering he beated his father a couple of times in the past, and he _was_ the strongest of their kingdom. A cowardly surprise attack wasn’t a disadvantage for him. Nonetheless, the fight wasn’t leaving him unharmed. The green dragon’s fire, the particular one in any realm that didn’t stop burning, hit him in the leg. The silver dragon growled at his opponent, attacking him with his icy breath, a rare power among his kind. It hit other dragon’s wing and he fell down in a spiral, his body colliding with the trees. The king took a second to freeze the wound on his leg.

The green dragon who he was almost sure to be duke Flameral, his father second in command, head-butted him and he scoffed at his peasant way of fighting. Then again, he ambushed his own king in the middle of the night. Adam turned around and grabbed the other by his neck, closing his jaw in a death grip. The other struggled, trying to free himself of his control. The silver dragon’s claw dug on his other wing — the one the ice didn’t hit —, ripping half of it off. The duke roared and bit Adam’s forearm, getting released and falling to the ground one more time, carrying him along. The impact on the green dragon’s wounded back caused him to release the king.

“Hey, you!” said Shiro from the middle of the woods. The sight of him on his black horse, accompanied by the other two, left him breathless in equal measures of amusement and fear. “Let’s get out of here!” The duke was raising and the floor trembled underneath them. The knight got almost dropped off Midnight — his horse — and Adam’s heart clenched on his reptile chest. Instead of fighting as he expected, the green dragon tried to run away flying, almost not reaching the top of the trees and staggering for kilometers; he turned back to his human shape mid-flight.

The king wanted to go after him, but seeing Shiro there took away his will to do anything that would include leaving him in the middle of the Cursed Forest, alone.

He lowered his head, not caring if it would classify him as submissive to a human’s will, and growled softly to him. The knight approached quietly and touched his nose, shivering at how cold it was. His yellow eyes closed and he purred; the other laughed.

“Just like a cat.” he mumbled. The glare he received was enough to shut him up.

Adam let another low growl and went back to the sky. He imagined how would it be to have the knight on his back. Would he be excited or scared? He was curious and wasn’t afraid of his other self.

The sun was rising now and he showed, the best way he could, the direction that leaded back to the road. Shiro, experienced with battle signs, understood his wordless command and followed him. Almost an hour passed and the king’s injuries were hurting badly, the adrenaline gonoe; the tower was near, he could see it coming closer. At the time he reached the vast glade made precisely with the purpose of landing, he let his tired body descend. When Shiro saw the dragon collapse on the grass with a loud ‘thud’, he jumped off the black horse and ran on his direction. He reached the silver king, avoiding to touch him, scared of hurting him further than he already was hurt.

“Say you’re okay, please.” he said mostly to himself, hearing the dragon huffing and closing his eyes. He winced, his draconic features slowly returning to human, until he laid on the knight’s arms.

“Adam.” he said in a small voice.

“Who?” Shiro blinked, confused.

“Call me Adam.” the king rested his head on the knight’s shoulder.

“Then call me—”

“Prince Shiro!” a familiar voice above him made him look up.

There he was, waving from an only window in the tower. Beside the tower, the space is filled with ruins of an ancient castle, covered in moss and plants. Before he could say how relieved he was, a man got Lance by his waist and jumped off the window. Shiro gasped. His worries proved to be unnecessary as red wings came out of his back and they landed in safety. Lance ran to them, a huge smile on his face. It disappeared as soon as he saw the king’s wounds.

“Oh lord, what—”

“What have you done to my brother?” their voices overlapped, one surprised and the other furious. The red winged man with long black hair and amber eyes tried to grab the hand he had around Adam, who stopped him, yellow eyes as well.

“Don’t touch him.” the order was clear and the man Lance called Keith retreated, worried.

Those were the last words he said before passing out from the pain. Shiro got scared; he was so cold in his arms, his heartbeat weak.

“What’s happening to him?!” he asked Keith, who approached them. “He’s cold!”

“It’s normal after shifting back.” he sighed to the human, calm after his brother words “He’s in a bad state, what happened?”

Shiro explained him what happened, and a differ light showed up on the other dragon’s grayish eyes. He was thankful someone was there for his brother and concerned about the information the prince gathered. Reluctantly, the knight let the smaller framed man carry Adam inside the tower.

“I’m so glad you’re alive, Lance.” he hugged the tall and slender man, hearing a growl behind him. _Someone_ was the jealous type. He snickered, facing the frown on the dragon’s face.

“He’s nice once you get to know him better.” Lance whispered.

  
  
  


Adam tried to open his eyes; they seemed to have dust in them. He yawned, warm and cozy, unlike he ever felt shifting back; still, his hands were cold. The next thing he noticed was someone breathing underneath him. Correction: not _someone_ ; his knight. His _prince_. He didn’t even know where the thought came from, but it got rooted on his mind. His smell filled his lungs as he breathed deeply. The king loved his smell ever since he buried his face in the back of his neck, in the inn’s bedroom. The way their shapes merged together as if their bodies were made of the same material soothed him.

“Adam, you’re awake?” Shiro whispered, caressing his curly hair. He usually didn’t enjoy to be touched; a dragon had to be aware of his surroundings. Now he was leaning on his hand, years of apprehension forgotten.

Which kind of wizardry was that?

“Maybe…” he finally said, his husky voice against Shiro’s skin send shivers down his spine. Adam smirked, opening his eyes. “ _Prince Shiro_ , huh? I wouldn’t have guessed.”

“Name’s Takashi.” he snickered, kissing the top of his head “Prince is not much, _king Adam_.”

He likes his name on the the knight’s mouth.

“If your name is Takashi, why Shiro, then?” the silver dragon raised on his elbows, his mouth almost touching the vulnerable part of his neck, between the Adam’s (what a bad pun, huh?) apple and his chin. The temptation to bite it was so big he almost lost his next words.

“My mom used to call me that when I was younger. She said I was the prince in a shining armor, on a white horse. Maybe I _was_ the white horse, I’m not so sure anymore.” he laughed, the sound vibrating on his neck. Chuckling, Adam finally indulged himself, kissing the place and receiving a moan as a response. The toothy smile he recompensed Shiro with was blinding, to which he responded with one of his. “Actually, Shirogane was my mom’s maiden name.” he let it slip and groaned.

“ _Great, you spoiled the mood._ ”

Except he didn’t. Adam looked at him deep in the eyes, his hazel ones piercing through his. Then a lazy smile showed on his face.

“It’s a nice memory but… Can we talk about it later? I’m in the middle of something right now.” Shiro breathlessly laughed while the king felt it with his lips, more than heard the sound. Which was beautiful, he couldn’t deny. The knight exposed his neck, and the instinctive dragon inside him purred in appreciation.

Slowly, he trailed his way down to his throat, to his collarbone and back up, spreading kisses on every piece of exposed skin he could find, savouring the salty taste of his neck. Adam caressed the prince’s strong jawline, his lips barely touching it; chills run down Shiro’s spine with how cold his mouth was, despite the rising fire inside him. He stretched his arms around his back and was rewarded with a raw growl coming from the king’s chest, vibrating on his throat. The knight gasped and then, the silver dragon’s mouth was on his, filling it.

He tilted his head; his tongue entered Shiro’s mouth, taking everything. His breath, his trust, his sanity, the low sounds he was making without noticing. He gave so much in return; the touch of his hands and the cold feeling of the tongue enticing his own to join their mutual exploration was dragging him to a place he didn’t knew he wanted to go until that moment.

Too soon, the king pulled away and Shiro opened his eyes to meet his passionate ones. His hazel irises turned amber, the predator inside of Adam pleased for being responsible for the messed man underneath him. His lips were swollen. His iron colored eyes melted as he relaxed, pupils dilated enough to hide the beautiful color. A triumphant grin made its way to the dragon’s face.

“Confident, ain’t we?” Shiro said, his hoarse voice increasing his arousal.

Without answering, he leaned forward and was stopped by the knight’s index.

“What?” he didn’t whine. Not at all.

“Keith and Lance are coming back soon.”

Adam hid his face on Shiro’s neck, huffing and mumbling indistinctive words, which made the knight laugh. The dragon had proved to be temperamental in those two days they spent together; however, for him to act childish around the prince was special. A hidden side of his personality unknown to Adam himself. Again, what kind of spell this human casted on him?

It was the spell of love, of course, and he couldn’t escape it as easily he did all those years. It was dangerous and exciting on equal measures. He _didn’t_ want to let this go.

“I want to travel with you.” the knight said, simply, as if he heard what Adam was thinking.

His smile was wide, bright, his fangs showing and his eyes closing. It was so stunning that Shiro kissed him.

“I’d love it, my prince.” he whispered after they reluctantly separated their lips.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So!! The matter with the duke and Shiro’s father wasn’t forgotten, I just figured it would be better to postpone it to after I finish adashicember and continue with this AU specifically. I mean, if I want to continue it, I have to plan it better (the only thing I’m proud of is my plot ideas, so I’ll let my creativity flow and do a better job). Also, I’ll post the prequel of this chapter AND this chapter separately to organize stuff and avoid mixing adashicember prompt with the AU  
> Hope you guys have enjoyed it  
> C'ya  
> ~Lee


	14. Day 14: Final Battle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "'Honerva.' Adam said, his head hurting. In spite of having his memories partially erased by the druids while he was still under their control, being exposed to the situation he was used to triggered those memories."  
> The paladins reached their final enemy and are close of finally bringing peace to the whole universe. It won't be easy to fight the final boss.

**Day 14 (Paladin Adam): Final Battle**

Adam woke up that morning feeling the weight of the universe on his shoulders. 

The previous night, he had a reunion with the paladins and the situation was alarming. They finally got the vital information about Honerva’s whereabouts from Lotor’s memories and they would depart the very next day, with Adam leading the silver panther. Along the years of violent training, he and the robot were almost one single being in battle, leaving no enemy alive to tell the story. Most of what he had done still haunted him at night, even if he told himself he had no control over his own body. And now he would have to return inside that space cat and save the universe. He didn’t know if he could.

Shiro was also nervous; he thought it was too early to revive the battle memories inside Adam. He knew what needed to be done, although he was afraid of losing his boyfriend to madness. He didn’t want to go through that for a fourth time — the first being his leaving for kerberos mission, the second **,** returning to Earth only to find his boyfriend’s tombstone and the third, Adam losing control and aggressing the Atlas crew on their mission to capture Lotor.

Adam had barely eaten anything, his heart beating loud on his chest. A while before they left, he was surprised to see Kayla in front of the conference room, arms crossed and eyes on the floor. 

“I want to go with you.” she said, fierce. No matter how hard the decision was to her, she wanted to protect him from harm, even if she hurt herself in the process.

“Are you out of your mind? Why are you here?!” he was furious she even asked that, but would never scream at her for being the bravest kid he had ever seen. 

“Coran is babysitting us.” she said, nonchalant “I heard you would join the mission and thought I could help.”

“No, you can’t. You need to be a  _ child _ , Kayla, not pilot a robot.”

“It’s war, Adam. I can be a child later.” 

He blinked a few times. She was always intelligent, however, it hurt to see her saying things that no child should say. She should’ve been protected from this kind of harm

“Kayla, you—” 

“I’ve trained, I know what to do.” she argued, stomping her foot.

“Your sister needs you. Your dads need you. Do you have an idea of what they would feel if you were there? They wouldn’t be able to do anything— I wouldn’t be able to do anything.” he was trying to reason with her using plausible points that would convince her. It worked, mostly, even more when he mentioned Zola. Her sister was the person she loved the most on the whole universe.

“We did this before, Adam.” 

“Because we needed to. I’ve never wanted to see you in danger. Now we have options!” he was supplicant.

“Adam, I’m worried about you.” she confessed, lowering her gaze to the floor one more time.

“Then you understand why I can’t let you go with me.”

She looked at him wide eyed. Apparently she didn’t figure it out by herself before he mentioned it. Spending years in space made her intelligent in many areas, except the emotional.

“I’m sorry.”

He got on one knee, smiling at her.

“No need to be sorry, sweetie.” he opened his arms and waited. She hugged him tight “Take care of your sister, okay?”

“Always.” she said as they separated, tears on her eyes “Be careful out there, okay?”

“Always.” 

  
  
  


They departed early in the morning, travelling by teludav until they’ve reached a place between two wormholes. Weirdly, they weren’t sucked in any of them. In an asteroid, there was the biggest base they’ve ever seen, buzzing with a purple energy pulse.

“We’re seeing something big here” said Shiro. Adam agreed; they weren’t even trying to hide themselves as Lotor did.

“Voltron is heading in first.” Keith leaded the team forward.

“I’m joining you.” Adam was already inside the silver panther and headed towards the lion robots; his speed was superior to theirs and he reached them in no time.

They didn’t arrived unnoticed. Druids were controlling the black and purple energy source and as soon as they spotted them, they threw the energy lightning, hitting Hunk first. His lion was shutted off.

“Don’t let it hit you, it steals your quintessence.” Adam reminded that information; it was already too late.

“Okay, we won’t let that happen again.”

“Sorry, guys.” Hunk felt bad for making them unable to form voltron. It could’ve been their advantage.

“It was too fast to dodge it, buddy.” Lance said, sympathizing with the situation.

“Try to reactivate yellow while we try to take them down.” Allura said.

“Hold on!! Guys, look at that!” said Pidge, alarmed.

The robot Lotor used to cross the barrier to the quintessence field appeared.

“Who’s piloting that?!” Shiro said, alarmed.

“Honerva.” Adam said, his head hurting. In spite of having his memories partially erased by the druids while he was still under their control, being exposed to the situation he was used to triggered those memories. However, the silver paladin couldn’t concentrate on that memories if he wanted to join the fight. “She uses Lotor’s robot after she rescued him from the quintessence field.”

“And what is her plan?” Shiro asked, intervening; the robot’s lasers hit Atlas shield while Hunk was still recovering.

“Uhh… No idea. We didn’t have time for a tea party and discussing plans to dominate the universe.” his words were dripping with his usual irony. Shiro got worried that he was feeling bad and using it as defense mechanism, though he had no time to deal with it in the middle of a battle.

Hunk regained the control over Yellow. They formed Voltron while Atlas received the damage and Adam jumped on the druids, avoiding getting struck by the lightning. The panther agility was its best skills, but its strength was not enough. He was just gaining time for the protagonists to show up.

With one blow of the shoulder cannon, they destroyed the druids. And it was right in time to help Atlas out; their shields were down and Honerva didn’t stop attacking them. The silver paladin tried to interfere and was hit by a ray that turned the panther off. He passed out, inside.

“Adam!” Shiro kept calling his name; he didn’t answer. He was so scared, he couldn’t

Voltron put itself between the panther and the enemy. Honerva charged at the robot, swords in hand.

“Form sword!” Keith said and Lance put his bayard inside the panel and turned it. They stopped the double swords with theirs, pushing it away from the robot’s face. The contact point between them seemed to suck all their quintessence. Honerva withdrew and charged at them as they were paralysed, hitting Voltron’s chest and separating the lions. 

“I can’t move!” Allura screamed.

“We can’t let her touch us!” said Keith.

“Easier said than done. How are we taking her down?” Pidge tried to move green, unsuccessfully.

“How come we defeated Lotor but we can’t defeat her?” Lance was annoyed.

“She is the high priestess and the origin of the galra empire, it’s not that simple.” Hunk told them.

“She’s the final boss!” complemented Pidge.

“Oops, it’s not over. Guys!!” 

Three robeasts similar to those that battled against Voltron on Earth came out of the asteroid’s base. 

“As if it wasn’t hard enough.” Lance muttered.

“Team, connect to your lions! We have to take her down first.” Keith told them, closing his eyes and reaching out for Black.

“We’ll take the robeasts down.” Shiro fired at the enemies, catching their attention. “Mfe pilots, it’s your turn.”

Before they could act, the panther jumped on one of the robots head, ripping the head off with his big mouth and releasing it on space. The paladin didn’t want to kill someone who could give them the vital information they needed. He used his mouth cannon to destroy the motionless body of the robeast, destroying it completely.

“Adam!” said the paladins in unison. 

They searched for their lions consciousness and soon were back on track. They took turns to attack Honerva and dodge hers, while the mfe pilots were in charge of the other two robeasts.

“This is not working, she’s not receiving damage!” Pidge said.

“Her energy is increasing!” Allura dodged the purple energy ball thrown on her.

“Form Voltron!” Keith shouted again.

Something different from normal happened. A sixth presence was there, joining their fusion. The silver panther roared as slowly was remodeled to fit the bigger robot. Its head was now Voltron’s chest, and the rest of it covered the shoulders as an armor. The moment Honerva went for them, they were ready for her. They formed a heavy silver shield combined with the previous one they made and held back the sword. Instead of getting their energy drained they were fine.

“I don’t know what happened, but let’s keep going!” Keith said.

Adam’s panel shone bright on the dark cabin, and he noticed a device, similar as the paladin’s bayard. It was his first time seeing it. He felt something telling him to turn it. He didn't like voices on his head, not when he got controlled by them before. However, he obeyed. Voltron formed a silver lance.

“Are you seeing that?!” 

“I'm pretty sure everyone is seeing it.” Shiro assured, mesmerised.

The next attempt was the last one and they were ready. The lance crossed the robot and they swear that even in the silent space they could hear a inhuman cry. It's was furious, feral and pierced through their souls. They shivered.

Crawling the lance, a black and red energy covered it and then Voltron. Flashes of images, sensations and memories tortured their connected minds. No one could comprehend what was happening. The robeasts stopped their attack in the moment they saw their leader incapable of joining the battle again. The weapon didn't hit Honerva directly, but her strength left her.

Shiro tried to contact the paladins, unsuccessfully. Their robot were engulfed by darkness, which was creating a mass of energy that pushed away anything near.

“I thinks it's telling us something!” Allura told the others, not sure if they were hearing her.

The corruption that occupied Honerva's body was controlling Voltron. The paladins were in great danger. Resentment flowed through their bodies, through their very souls. War, blood, the burning feeling of hatred; everything flashing behind their eyes. It was intense, overwhelming. No wonder Honerva couldn’t handle that much damage inside her brain before being controlled by it.

“ _ I’ve lost everything. Now is your turn to lose, paladins. I will destroy every planet on every universe and they’ll feel the pain I felt when I was destroyed! _ ” images of a planet getting blown up from its core and the parts of it were spread around. A piece from its center started boiling and becoming dark, all the hatred concentrated there. The planet was alive, as a balmera, and refused to die slowly. It wanted revenge.

  
  


That was the reason the entity has passed through the rift. It was looking for a new host to thrive on its plan to destroy all realities, making them suffer the same fate war has made it suffer. The quintessence corruption began with this resentment and spreaded through the whole universe, causing a rupture on it.

Voltron, the robot built of pieces of that planet, was now a separated existence and resisted against the domination. Their lions were talking to them, instructing them on how to purify that energy.

“What we have to do—” shouted Allura, above the mental torture they were passing through “Is risky. But we need to!” 

“Form sword!” Keith said. He, Lance and Allura put their bayards inside the panel.

They sword shone with a pink aura on it. Allura was using the powers she learned in Oriande to dominate the source of corruption and gather it in one place, while energizing the sword. The other lions and the panther were donating their quintessence to Allura. In one blow, the blade pierced Voltron’s chest. One by one, they lost control of the robot’s limbs, and the entity was slowly turning back to its original color, being absorbed by the sword. The ire present on their mind eased into a tired and peaceful feeling.

As soon as they were done, the sword lost its glow and slowly faded, like dust on the wind.

Everyone was exhausted, panting and sweating from all the physical and mental effort. They were stuck inside their lions and they knew it wouldn’t turn on ever again.

  
  
  


Kosmo took them off of their robots one by one, teleporting them to Atlas, where safety lied. There was no vital signs of Honerva inside Lotor’s ship; since she wasn’t alive to begin with, being left by the entity made life leave her body as well. She was free for the first time in all those centuries. 

Shiro was worried sick. He left the bridge as soon as they’ve entered the ship. He held Adam in a tight hug, almost crying in relief, his face buried on his boyfriend’s neck. He couldn’t believe he put himself in danger again; nonetheless, he was grateful it was finally over.

The alteans who piloted the robeasts were taken in the infirmary, the galra base was destroyed and they carried Volton inside Atlas. Even if it didn’t work anymore, it was dangerous to let it there in space. In the future it would become a monument in honor of the first and second generation of paladins who contributed to saving the universe.

Arriving on Earth was stressful; the information of their mission was leaked and there were paparazzi everywhere, and it triggered Adam’s fear of light. Shiro was on the edge, about to punch one of them when Keith finally dismissed them and they could enter the Garrison. Everyone was exhausted.

Lance and Keith were received by his girls that jumped on them. Kayla started making questions in high speed, most of them confusing Keith, while Zola only smiled to Lance, her dimples showing. She laid her head on her dad’s shoulder and fell asleep. They gave her a soft smile.

Shiro guided Adam to his room. He was tired and still shaking because of his fobia, his mind was a mess. He didn’t even noticed Shiro undressing and bathing him. He realised where he was only by the time his boyfriend covered him; he was wearing his pajamas.

“I’m so proud of you, sweetheart.” the white haired man whispered, tears on his eyes. “I love you.”

“I love you too, Takashi.” he sighed, relieved, and slowly drifted to the dreamland.

Shiro didn’t know how many hours he spent there, looking at him, silently protecting Adam from his bad dreams. He fell asleep without noticing, fully dressed and with his arm around the silver paladin’s waist.   
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a fix-it fic for s8. I intend to write more about what happened after, but not so soon, though...  
> I had this chapter laying on my files for weeks now. I wanted it to be perfect (well, as perfect as I could) and I'm satisfied with the results?  
> Hope you guys enjoyed it! Soon I'll be back with the other... 17 chapters... Whyy so much?!!   
> See you in a month or so, don't give up on meeee  
> ~Lee


End file.
